Where does “defile” come from?
Defile comes from Middle English defilen, from French défilé, from French défiler, formed with the French prefix dé- (from Middle French des-) and Latin filius meaning son.
defile (English): To make unclean, dirty, or impure; soil; befoul;...
Definitions
- To make unclean, dirty, or impure; soil; befoul;...
Ancestry of “defile”, step by step
defile traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via French défilé
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | défilé | past participle of défiler; parade; march in... |
| 2 | French | défiler | To parade or march; To appear one after the... |
| 3 | French | dé- | used to make antonyms |
| 4 | Middle French | dés- | de-; dis |
| 5 | Latin | dē- | of; from |
| 6 | Latin | dē | of; concerning; about |
| 7 | Latin | post | behind; after, since, besides, except; behind,... |
| 8 | Latin | poste | ablative singular of postis |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | posti | behind, after |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | pósti | after |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | pós | afterwards, post; by, at |
via Middle English defilen
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | defilen | to make dirty |
| 2 | Middle English | defoulen | To injure or damage; to cause harm to |
| 3 | Middle English | foulen | To dirty or foul; to make or become dirty |
| 4 | Old English | fūlian | to become foul; rot; decay |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | fūlāną | To become foul; rot; decay |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -āną | Creates factitive verbs from adjectives, later... |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | -ajaną | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -oyéti | Creates factitive verbs from adjectives |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 11 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |