Where does “airstrip” come from?
Airstrip is a 20th-century English compound of air and strip, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰeh₁- meaning to release or let go.
airstrip (English): An aircraft landing field, usually with one...
Definitions
- An aircraft landing field, usually with one...
Ancestry of “airstrip”, step by step
airstrip traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English aïr
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | aïr | — |
| 2 | Middle English | aire | air |
| 3 | Old French | air | air mixture of gases that make up the earth's atmosphere |
| 4 | Latin | āēr | air |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | ἀήρ | mist; air; wind |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | auhḗr | — |
via English strip
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | strip | A long, thin piece of land; any long, thin area;... |
| 2 | Middle English | strepen | to remove the clothes of, undress, strip; to peel... |
| 3 | Old English | strīepan | plunder |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | strēpōną | — |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)ter(h₁)- | to be stiff; be rigid; exert |