Where does “bass” come from?
bass (English) comes from Middle English bace, from Middle English bars, from Old English bærs, from Proto-West Germanic bars, from Proto-Germanic barsaz, from Proto-Indo-European bʰórsos, from Proto-Indo-European bʰers- — top, tip, point.
bass (English): Of sound, a voice or an instrument, low in pitch...
Definitions
- Of sound, a voice or an instrument, low in pitch...
Ancestry of “bass”, step by step
bass traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English bace
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | bace | bass; Alternative form of bas; Alternative form... |
| 2 | Middle English | bars | Alternative form of bace |
| 3 | Old English | bærs | a fish, perch |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | bars | perch |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | barsaz | perch |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰórsos | prickle, thorn, scale; pointy, prickly |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰers- | top, tip, point |
via English bast
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | bast | Fibre made from the phloem of certain plants and... |
| 2 | Middle English | bastard | an illegitimate child, especially a noble one; a... |
| 3 | Old French | bastard | bastard person conceived to unmarried parents |
| 4 | Medieval Latin | bastardus | illegitimate child |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | banstuz | bond, tie |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰendʰ- | to bind; bond |