Where does “barb” come from?
Barb comes from Middle English barbe, from Middle French barbe, from Old French barbe, from Latin barba meaning beard.
barb (English): The point that stands backward in an arrow,...
Definitions
- The point that stands backward in an arrow,...
Ancestry of “barb”, step by step
barb traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English barbiturate
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | barbiturate | Any salt or ester of barbituric acid; Any of... |
| 2 | German | Barbiturat | barbiturate |
| 3 | French | barbiturique | barbiturate |
| 4 | German | Barbitursäure | — |
| 5 | German | Barbara | popular especially in the mid-twentieth century |
| 6 | Latin | barbara | a wild, savage, cruel, barbarous, shameless, or... |
| 7 | Latin | barbarus | foreign; savage; uncivilized |
| 8 | Ancient Greek | βάρβαρος | non-Greek-speaking, foreign; barbaric, brutal,... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | balb- | — |