Where does “compass” come from?
Compass comes from Middle English compassen, from Old French compas, from Latin com- meaning "together," ultimately from Latin com.
compass (English): A magnetic or electronic device used to determine...
Definitions
- A magnetic or electronic device used to determine...
Ancestry of “compass”, step by step
compass traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English compas
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | compas | Guile, craft or an instance of it; the use of... |
| 2 | Old French | compas | — |
| 3 | Medieval Latin | compassus | a circle, a circuit; suffered; pitied |
| 4 | Italian | compassare | measure with a pair of compasses |
| 5 | Latin | com- | allomorph of con- |
| 6 | Latin | con- | Used in compounds to indicate a being or bringing... |
| 7 | Latin | cum | with, along with; at; -fold |
| 8 | Old Latin | com | Alternative form of cum |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | kom | with, along, at |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱóm | beside, near, by, with |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 12 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 13 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 14 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 15 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 16 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 17 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 18 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |