Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “cars” come from?

Cars comes from English car, from Proto-Germanic karzijaną, from Proto-Indo-European gers-, from Latin carra and carrus, from Gaulish karros, from Proto-Celtic karros, from Proto-Indo-European ḱr̥sós.

cars (English): plural of car

Definitions

  1. plural of car

Ancestry of “cars”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishcarA wheeled vehicle that moves independently, with...
2Middle Englishcarre—
3Anglo-Normancarrecart
4Latincarra—
5Latincarrusa wagon, a four-wheeled baggage cart; a cartload,...
6Gaulishkarroswagon
7Proto-Celtickarroswagon
8Proto-Indo-Europeanḱr̥sósvehicle
9Proto-Indo-Europeanḱers-to run
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱers- →