Where does “center” come from?

Center comes from Middle French centre, from Latin centrum, from Ancient Greek κέντρον, derived from the verb κεντεῖν meaning to prick or pierce, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ḱent-.

center (English): The point in the interior of a circle that is...

Definitions

  1. The point in the interior of a circle that is...

Ancestry of “center”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Frenchcentre—
2Latincentrumcenter
3Ancient GreekκέντρονSomething with a sharp point: point, spike, spur;...
4Proto-Hellenic*kéntron—
5Proto-Indo-European*ḱéntrompointed tool

Words derived from “center”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European *ḱéntrom →Every word from Proto-Hellenic *kéntron →Every word from Ancient Greek κέντρον →