Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “colour” come from?

colour (English) comes from Middle English colour, from Anglo-Norman colur, from Old French colour, from Latin color, from Ancient Greek μέτρον, from Ancient Greek -τρον, from Proto-Hellenic -tron, from Proto-Indo-European -trom — Derives agent nouns from verbs, denoting someone...

colour (English): Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South...

Definitions

  1. Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South...

Ancestry of “colour”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishcolourcolour, hue, shade; pigment, dye; method
2Anglo-NormancolurAlternative form of color
3Old FrenchcolourAlternative form of color
4Latincolorcolour, shade; color; pigment; complexion
5Ancient Greekμέτρονsomething used to measure: measure, rule, weight;...
6Ancient Greek-τρονForms instrument nouns
7Proto-Hellenic-tronForms instrument nouns from verb stems
8Proto-Indo-European-tromForms nouns denoting a tool or instrument
9Proto-Indo-European-tḗrDerives agent nouns from verbs, denoting someone...

Words derived from “colour”

  • colours
  • colouring
  • colourless
  • discoloration
  • watercolour
  • discolouration
  • colourist
  • colourable
  • discolour
  • multicolour
  • colourlessness
  • colourman
  • watercolourist
  • colouristic
  • colourably
  • undercolour
  • bodycolour
  • colourfast
  • colourlessly
  • colourism
  • decolourization
  • colourisation
  • colourer
  • colourway
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tḗr →