Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Spenser” come from?

Spenser (English) comes from Middle English Spenser, from Middle English spenser, from Old French espensier, from Latin dispensare, from Latin dispendere, from Latin pendēre, from Latin pendō, from Proto-Italic pendō — to stretch.

Ancestry of “Spenser”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishSpenser—
2Middle Englishspenserspencer
3Old Frenchespensier—
4Latindispensarepresent active infinitive of dispēnsō;...
5Latindispendereto weight out; weigh out; to weigh out
6Latinpendēre—
7Latinpendō—
8Proto-Italicpendōhang, put in a hanging position
9Proto-Indo-European(s)péndeti—
10Proto-Indo-European(s)pend-to stretch

Words derived from “Spenser”

  • Spenserian
  • Spenserianism
  • Spenserism
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)pend- →