Where does “antifoam” come from?

antifoam (English) comes from English foam, from Middle English fom, from Old English fām, from Proto-West Germanic *faim, from Proto-Germanic faimaz, from Proto-Indo-European (s)poHy-m-os, from Proto-Indo-European (s)poH(y)-, from Proto-Indo-European speh₁- — to succeed, to prosper.

antifoam (English): Any chemical agent that inhibits the formation of...

Definitions

  1. Any chemical agent that inhibits the formation of...

Ancestry of “antifoam”, step by step

antifoam traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English foam

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfoamA substance composed of a large collection of...
2Middle EnglishfomAlternative form of fome
3Old Englishfāmfoam
4Proto-West Germanic*faimfoam, froth
5Proto-Germanicfaimazfoam
6Proto-Indo-European(s)poHy-m-os
7Proto-Indo-European(s)poH(y)-foam
8Proto-Indo-Europeanspeh₁-to succeed, to prosper

via English anti

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishantiOpposed to something; That has a torsion angle...
2Englishanti-Against, hostile to; Contrasting with the norm;...
3Ancient Greekἀντι-anti-, against; like, reminiscent of
4Ancient Greekᾰ̓ντῐ́opposite
Every word from Proto-Indo-European speh₁-Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)poH(y)-Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)poHy-m-os
antifoam — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer