Where does “alternately” come from?
Alternately comes from English alternate, from Latin alterno (to do by turns), derived from Latin alter (other), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ád (to, toward).
alternately (English): In reciprocal succession; succeeding by turns; in...
Definitions
- In reciprocal succession; succeeding by turns; in...
Ancestry of “alternately”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | alternate | Happening by turns; one following the other in... |
| 2 | Latin | alternātus | — |
| 3 | Latin | alternō | — |
| 4 | Latin | alternus | alternate , successive; interchangeable; mutual,... |
| 5 | Latin | alter | the other, the second; the one...the other |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂élteros | other , second |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂el- | to grow, nourish; beyond, other; to wander, roam |