Where does “centerground” come from?
centerground (English) comes from English Center, from Middle English center, from Middle French centre, from Latin centrum, from Ancient Greek κέντρον, from Proto-Hellenic *kéntron, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱéntrom — pointed tool.
centerground (English): The area between foreground and background;...
Definitions
- The area between foreground and background;...
Ancestry of “centerground”, step by step
centerground traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Center
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Center | The point in the interior of a circle that is equidistant from all points on the circumference |
| 2 | Middle English | center | — |
| 3 | Middle French | centre | — |
| 4 | Latin | centrum | center |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | κέντρον | Something with a sharp point: point, spike, spur;... |
| 6 | Proto-Hellenic | *kéntron | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | *ḱéntrom | pointed tool |
via English ground
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | ground | The surface of the Earth, as opposed to the sky... |
| 2 | Middle English | ground | ground; Earth |
| 3 | Old English | grund | ground; bottom, foundation; abyss, depths |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | grunduz | ground, foundation |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | gʰrem- | to be angry; to sound, bellow, growl, roar, be... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | gʰer- | to rub; to stroke; to grind |