Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “circumfix” come from?

circumfix (English) comes from English fix, from Middle English fixen, from Old English fyxen, from Proto-West Germanic fuhsini, from Proto-West Germanic fuhs, from Proto-Germanic fuhsaz, from Proto-Indo-European púḱsos, from Proto-Indo-European puḱ- — tail; press together.

circumfix (English): An affix containing both a prefixing and a...

Definitions

  1. An affix containing both a prefixing and a...

Ancestry of “circumfix”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfixTo pierce; now generally replaced by transfix; To...
2Middle Englishfixena vixen
3Old Englishfyxenvixen
4Proto-West Germanicfuhsinivixen, female fox
5Proto-West Germanicfuhsfox
6Proto-Germanicfuhsazfox
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpúḱsosthe tailed one
8Proto-Indo-Europeanpuḱ-tail; press together

Words derived from “circumfix”

  • circumfixal
Every word from Proto-Indo-European puḱ- →