Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “briefless” come from?

briefless (English) comes from English brief, from Middle English bref, from Old French brief, from Latin brevis, from Proto-Italic *breɣʷis, from Proto-Indo-European mréǵʰus, from Proto-Indo-European mreǵʰ- — short.

briefless (English): Lacking briefs

Definitions

  1. Lacking briefs

Ancestry of “briefless”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishbriefOf short duration; happening quickly; Concise;...
2Middle Englishbrefconcise; brief; diminutive, little
3Old Frenchbriefbrief, short in length; letter or statement
4Latinbrevisshort, small, little, narrow; brief, short;...
5Proto-Italic*breɣʷis—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanmréǵʰusshort; brief
7Proto-Indo-Europeanmreǵʰ-short
Every word from Proto-Indo-European mreǵʰ- →