Where does “boxcar” come from?
Boxcar is a compound of box and car, where box derives from Latin buxus, from Ancient Greek πύξος, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ḱr̥sós, and car comes from Latin carrus, from Proto-Indo-European gers-.
boxcar (English): An enclosed railroad freight car, especially one...
Definitions
- An enclosed railroad freight car, especially one...
Ancestry of “boxcar”, step by step
boxcar traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English box
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | box | Senses relating to a three-dimensional object or... |
| 2 | French | boxer | boxer; boxer shorts, boxers; to box |
| 3 | French | -er | Forms infinitives of first-conjugation verbs |
| 4 | English | -er | A person or thing that does an action indicated... |
| 5 | Middle English | -er | agentive suffix; agent noun suffix |
| 6 | Old French | -er | Alternative form of -ier, verbal suffix;... |
| 7 | Latin | -āre | first conjugation |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | -āō | Forms primarily denominative verbs |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -eh₂yéti | Creates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive... |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 12 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |
via English car
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | car | A wheeled vehicle that moves independently, with... |
| 2 | Middle English | carre | cart, wagon |
| 3 | Anglo-Norman | carre | cart |
| 4 | Latin | carra | — |
| 5 | Latin | carrus | a wagon, a four-wheeled baggage cart; a cartload,... |
| 6 | Gaulish | karros | wagon |
| 7 | Proto-Celtic | karros | wagon |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱr̥sós | vehicle |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱers- | to run |