Where does “cladeless” come from?
cladeless (English) comes from English less, from Middle English les, from Old English lēas, from Proto-Germanic *laus.
cladeless (English): That is not a member of a clade
Definitions
- That is not a member of a clade
Ancestry of “cladeless”, step by step
cladeless traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English less
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | less | To a smaller extent or degree; comparative form... |
| 2 | Middle English | les | false; lying; deceptive; falsehood; a lie |
| 3 | Old English | lēas | false, lax; false, void, loose; devoid of, loose... |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | *laus | — |
via English clade
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | clade | A group of animals or other organisms derived... |
| 2 | Ancient Greek | κλάδος | young slip or shoot of a tree, such as is broken... |
| 3 | Proto-Indo-European | kl̥h₂dos | — |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | kelh₂- | to beat; to break |