Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “dame” come from?

Dame comes from Middle English dame, from Old French dame, from Latin domina meaning "mistress of the house," derived from domus meaning "house," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European dṓm.

dame (English): "Usually capitalized as" Dame: a title equivalent...

Definitions

  1. "Usually capitalized as" Dame: a title equivalent...

Ancestry of “dame”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishdame—
2Old Frenchdamelady; woman
3Late Latindomnalady, mistress
4Latindominalady or mistress of the house
5LatinDominusthe Lord; Lord; The Lord
6Latindomushouse, home; any building or abode; native place,...
7Proto-Italicdomoshouse, home
8Proto-Indo-Europeandṓmhome; house
9Proto-Indo-Europeandem-to build; to arrange, to put together

Words derived from “dame”

  • stepdame
  • schooldame
  • damehood
  • dames
  • damely
  • damewort
  • dameship
  • damo
  • damo
  • dami
  • deem
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dem- →