Where does “athlete” come from?
Athlete comes from Ancient Greek ἀθλητής, one who competed in contests, derived from ἀθλέω, to compete, from ἆθλον, a contest or prize, from ἄϝεθλον, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European h₂weh₁-.
athlete (English): A participant in a group of sporting activities...
Definitions
- A participant in a group of sporting activities...
Ancestry of “athlete”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | āthlēta | wrestler, athlete |
| 2 | Ancient Greek | ἀθλητής | a combatant, champion, especially a prizefighter;... |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | ἀθλέω | to contend for a prize, combat, wrestle; to be an... |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | -έω | Used to form verbs from nouns, adjectives and... |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | -éyeti | Forms causative imperfective verbs from roots;... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | -yeti | Creates transitive imperfective verbs from roots |