Where does “back” come from?
Back comes from Middle English bakke, from Old Swedish nattbakka, from Latin bassus, from Ancient Greek βάσις meaning "base" or "foundation," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European gʷem-.
back (English): Near the rear; Not current; Far from the main...
Definitions
- Near the rear; Not current; Far from the main...
Ancestry of “back”, step by step
back traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via French bac
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | bac | ferry; vat; high school exit exam in France; A... |
| 2 | French | baccalauréat | baccalaureat; bachelor's degree |
| 3 | Medieval Latin | baccalaureatus | bachelor's degree |
| 4 | Latin | baccalaureus | bachelor |
| 5 | Latin | laurea | laurel, bay tree; crown, wreath or branch of... |
| 6 | Latin | laurus | laurel tree; laurels; a crown of laurel |
| 7 | English | -aceous | Of, relating to, resembling or containing the... |
| 8 | Latin | -āceus | aceous; resembling, having the nature of, forming, belonging to |
| 9 | Latin | -āx | ish, -y |
| 10 | Latin | -ium | Suffix used to form abstract nouns, sometimes... |
| 11 | Latin | -ius | forming adjectives from nouns; nominative neuter... |
| 12 | Proto-Italic | -jōs | Forms comparative adjectives |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | -yós | Creates adjectives from noun or verb stems |
via English draw
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | draw | "To move or develop something."; "To exert or... |
| 2 | Fijian | drau | leaf; hundred |
| 3 | Proto-Oceanic | rau | — |
| 4 | Proto-Malayo-Polynesian | dahun | leaf |
via Middle English bak
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | bak | The back, hind, or rear of a being's body; The... |