Where does “almswoman” come from?
almswoman (English) comes from English alms, from French aumône, from Old French almosne, from Vulgar Latin alemosyna, from Latin eleēmosyna, from Ancient Greek ἐλεημοσύνη, from Ancient Greek ἐλεήμων, from Ancient Greek ἐλεέω — Creates transitive imperfective verbs from roots.
almswoman (English): A woman who depends on the receipt of alms; a...
Definitions
- A woman who depends on the receipt of alms; a...
Ancestry of “almswoman”, step by step
almswoman traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English alms
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | alms | Something given to the poor as charity, such as... |
| 2 | French | aumône | alms; a small, insulting sum of money |
| 3 | Old French | almosne | alms |
| 4 | Vulgar Latin | alemosyna | alms |
| 5 | Latin | eleēmosyna | alms |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | ἐλεημοσύνη | pity, mercy; alms, charity |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | ἐλεήμων | pitiful, merciful |
| 8 | Ancient Greek | ἐλεέω | I have pity on, take pity on, show mercy to |
| 9 | Ancient Greek | -έω | Used to form verbs from nouns, adjectives and... |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -éyeti | Forms causative imperfective verbs from roots;... |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | -yeti | Creates transitive imperfective verbs from roots |
via English woman
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | woman | An adult female human; All female humans... |
| 2 | Middle English | womman | An female adult person; a woman; The female sex... |
| 3 | Old English | wīfmann | woman; female servant; woman |
| 4 | Old English | mann | person; man meaning mankind; man meaning adult... |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | mann | person, human |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | *mann- | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | men- | to think, mind; spiritual activity; to stay,... |