Where does “bill” come from?
Bill comes from Middle English bile, from Anglo-Norman bille, from Latin bulla meaning a rounded swelling or bubble, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European bew-.
bill (English): Any of various bladed or pointed hand weapons,...
Definitions
- Any of various bladed or pointed hand weapons,...
Ancestry of “bill”, step by step
bill traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English bill
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | bill | — |
| 2 | Old English | bil | a kind of sword or other bladed weapon,... |
| 3 | Frankish | billi | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | bilją | a cutting implement; blade; axe; sword; spike;... |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | harjaz | army; army leader; commander; warrior |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | kóryos | war; troops; army; war, troops |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱer- | to grow, to make grow, to nourish; to plait,... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | kr̥- | to turn, to bend |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | ker- | army |
via Middle English bille
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | bille | document |
| 2 | Anglo-Norman | bille | stick; baton; written decree, announcement |
| 3 | Old French | bulle | seal; a letter sealed with a bull |
| 4 | Medieval Latin | bulla | seal; sealed document; seal capsule; seal",... |
| 5 | Latin | bulla | a bubble; a swollen or bubble-shaped object,... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰel- | to sound; to speak, roar, bark; shiny, white; to... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰōl- | — |