Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “aircraft” come from?

Aircraft comes from English air and craft, with air deriving from Middle English air, Anglo-Norman eir, and Latin aer meaning open air or atmosphere.

aircraft (English): A vehicle capable of atmospheric flight due to...

Definitions

  1. A vehicle capable of atmospheric flight due to...

Ancestry of “aircraft”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-craftDenoting a skill of a particular kind; Denoting a...
2Middle English-craft—
3Old English-cræftdenoting an art or science; denoting strength or...
4Old Englishcræftstrength, power; skill; art
5Proto-West Germanickraftustrength, power; skill
6Proto-Germanickraftuzstrength, power
7Proto-Germanic-þuzForms result nouns from verb roots, usually from...
8Proto-Indo-European-tusDerives action nouns from verb roots

Words derived from “aircraft”

  • aircraftsman
  • aircraftman
  • aircraftwoman
  • aircraftlike
  • anti-aircraft
  • airprox
  • aircraftswoman
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tus →