Where does “chatoyancy” come from?

chatoyancy (English) comes from English chatoyant, from French chatoyant, from French chatoyer, from French chat, from English chat, from English chatter, from English -er, from Middle English -er — he, she.

chatoyancy (English): The state or condition of being chatoyant

Definitions

  1. The state or condition of being chatoyant

Ancestry of “chatoyancy”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishchatoyantHaving a certain optical reflectance effect,...
2Frenchchatoyantpresent participle of chatoyer; shimmering,...
3Frenchchatoyerto shimmer; to iridesce
4Frenchchatcat; cat, tom, tomcat; tag, tig
5EnglishchatTo be engaged in informal conversation; To talk...
6EnglishchatterTalk, especially meaningless or unimportant talk;...
7English-erA person or thing that does an action indicated...
8Middle English-eragentive suffix; agent noun suffix
9Old French-erAlternative form of -ier, verbal suffix;...
10Latin-ārefirst conjugation
11Proto-Italic-āōForms primarily denominative verbs
12Proto-Indo-European-eh₂yétiCreates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive...
13Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
14Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-
15Chichewaiyehe, she
Every word from Chichewa iye
chatoyancy — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer