Where does “contractor” come from?
Contractor comes from Late Latin contractor, derived from Latin contractus, the past participle of contraho, meaning to draw together or bring together, from the prefix con- meaning with or together.
contractor (English): A person or company that builds or improves...
Definitions
- A person or company that builds or improves...
Ancestry of “contractor”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Late Latin | contractor | — |
| 2 | Latin | contractus | collected, accomplished, contracted; narrow,... |
| 3 | Latin | contrahō | to draw in, bring or drag several objects together; collect, assemble, gather, amass |
| 4 | Latin | cōn- | Used in compounds to indicate a being or bringing together of several objects |
| 5 | Latin | cum | with, along with; at; -fold |
| 6 | Old Latin | com | Alternative form of cum |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | kom | with, along, at |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱóm | beside, near, by, with |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 10 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 11 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 12 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 13 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 14 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 15 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 16 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |