Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “centurion” come from?

Centurion comes from Latin centurio, a military officer commanding a unit of centum soldiers, derived from Latin centum meaning "hundred," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ḱm̥tóm.

centurion (English): An officer of the ancient Roman army, in command...

Definitions

  1. An officer of the ancient Roman army, in command...

Ancestry of “centurion”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1LatincenturioI divide into groups of one hundred; I arrange...
2Latincenturiacentury, "in its senses as"; any similar...
3Latincentuma hundred; 100
4Latinfoliuma leaf; a petal; a sheet or leaf of paper
5Proto-Italic*foljom—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰolh₃yomleaf
7Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰleh₃-bloom, flower
8Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰel-to sound; to speak, roar, bark; shiny, white; to...
9Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰōl-—
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰōl- →