Where does “cheetah” come from?

Cheetah comes from Hindi चीता, from Sanskrit चित्र, from Sanskrit चित्रक.

cheetah (English): A distinctive member of the cat family, slightly...

Definitions

  1. A distinctive member of the cat family, slightly...

Ancestry of “cheetah”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Hindiचीताcheetah; leopard
2Sauraseni Prakrit𑀘𑀺𑀢𑁆𑀢𑀕—
3Sanskritचित्रकleopard
4Sanskritचित्रbright, conspicuous, visible, clear, loud,...
5Proto-Indo-Iraniančitrásbright, clear, shining
6Proto-Indo-European*kit-ró-s—

Words derived from “cheetah”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European *kit-ró-s →Every word from Proto-Indo-Iranian čitrás →Every word from Sanskrit चित्र →