Where does “binary” come from?
Binary comes from Late Latin binarius, from Latin bini (two at a time), from Latin bis (twice), from Latin duis (two), from Latin duo (two), from Proto-Indo-European dwóh₁ (two).
binary (English): Being in a state of one of two mutually exclusive...
Definitions
- Being in a state of one of two mutually exclusive...
Ancestry of “binary”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Late Latin | binarius | consisting of two; Containing or consisting of... |
| 2 | Latin | bīnī | — |
| 3 | Latin | bis | twice, two times, on two occasions, in two ways |
| 4 | Latin | color | colour, shade; color; pigment; complexion |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | μέτρον | something used to measure: measure, rule, weight;... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | -τρον | Forms instrument nouns |
| 7 | Proto-Hellenic | -tron | Forms instrument nouns from verb stems |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -trom | Forms nouns denoting a tool or instrument |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -tḗr | Derives agent nouns from verbs, denoting someone... |