Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “bombardment” come from?

Bombardment derives from English bombard, from French bombarder, from Latin bombus meaning a deep sound or humming noise, with the verb-forming suffix -are, ultimately from Ancient Greek βόμβος with the same sense, traced to Proto-Indo-European men-.

bombardment (English): the act of bombing, especially towns or cities;...

Definitions

  1. the act of bombing, especially towns or cities;...

Ancestry of “bombardment”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-mentUsed to form nouns from verbs, the nouns having...
2Middle English-mentForms nouns denoting a result or action from...
3Old French-mentUsed to form adverbs, most of the time equivalent...
4Latin-mentuminstrument, medium, or result of; e.g....
5Latin-mentanominative plural of -mentum; accusative plural...
6Proto-Indo-European-mn̥Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -mn̥ →