Where does “beef” come from?
Beef comes from French bœuf, from Latin bos, from Ancient Greek βοῦς, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European gʷṓws, all meaning ox or cattle.
beef (English): The meat from a cow, bull, or other bovine; A...
Definitions
- The meat from a cow, bull, or other bovine; A...
Ancestry of “beef”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | bef | beef; cow flesh or meat; A bovine or its carcass |
| 2 | Old French | buef | cow |
| 3 | Latin | bōs | head of cattle (cow, bull, steer, or ox) |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | βοῦς | cow, ox, cattle; shield: ὃτι ἐκ βοείων ἐστι... |
| 5 | Latin | corvus | A raven; a bird associated with prophecy and... |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | korwos | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱorh₂wós | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱer- | to grow, to make grow, to nourish; to plait,... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | kr̥- | to turn, to bend |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | ker- | army |