Where does “counterclockwise” come from?
Counterclockwise combines English clock from Old English cloccian, Proto-Germanic klukkwōną, and Old French contre from Latin contra meaning "against," ultimately deriving from Proto-Indo-European ret- and Hróth₂-eh₂.
counterclockwise (English): In the direction of rotation opposite from...
Definitions
- In the direction of rotation opposite from...
Ancestry of “counterclockwise”, step by step
counterclockwise traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via English counter
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | counter | One who counts; A reckoner; someone who collects... |
| 2 | Middle English | countour | An accountant; a financial recordkeeper |
| 3 | Middle French | contoir | Alternative spelling of comptoir |
| 4 | Middle French | compter | to recount; to tell |
| 5 | Old French | compter | — |
| 6 | Latin | computāre | — |
| 7 | Latin | computō | to calculate, compute, reckon together |
| 8 | Latin | com- | allomorph of con- |
| 9 | Latin | con- | Used in compounds to indicate a being or bringing... |
| 10 | Latin | cum | with, along with; at; -fold |
| 11 | Old Latin | com | Alternative form of cum |
| 12 | Proto-Italic | kom | with, along, at |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱóm | beside, near, by, with |
| 14 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 15 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 16 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 17 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 18 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 19 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 20 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 21 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |
via English clock
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | clock | An instrument used to measure or keep track of... |
| 2 | Middle English | clokke | clock, timekeeping device |
| 3 | Middle Dutch | clocke | bell; something bell-shaped |
| 4 | Old Dutch | *clocca | bell |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | *klokkā | bell |
| 6 | Medieval Latin | clocca | bell; travelers' cape, literally “a bell”, so... |
| 7 | Old Irish | cloc | bell; clock |
| 8 | Proto-Celtic | klokkos | bell |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | klēg- | — |