Where does “cmdlet” come from?

Cmdlet comes from English cmd combined with the diminutive suffix -let, which derives from Middle French -el and -et, Old French -et, Latin -atus, Proto-Italic -ātos, and Proto-Indo-European -eh₂tos and -tós.

cmdlet (English): A specialized.NET class implementing a particular operation in Windows PowerShell

Definitions

  1. A specialized.NET class implementing a particular operation in Windows PowerShell

Ancestry of “cmdlet”, step by step

cmdlet traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English let

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishletTo allow to, not to prevent; To leave; To allow...
2Middle Englishletento let
3Old Englishlǣtanto let; leave; to let go, leave; to allow, let...
4Proto-West Germaniclātanto let, to allow; to leave alone
5Proto-Germaniclētanąto let, to allow; to leave alone
6Proto-Indo-Europeanleh₁d-to be tired

via English cmd

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishcmdAbbreviation of command
Every word from Proto-Indo-European leh₁d-