Where does “descry” come from?
Descry comes from Middle English descryen, from Old French descrier (des- plus crier), ultimately from Latin dis- and ex combined with a Proto-Indo-European root expressing separation or duality.
descry (English): To see; To discover by the eye; to espy; to...
Definitions
- To see; To discover by the eye; to espy; to...
Ancestry of “descry”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | descrien | — |
| 2 | Old French | descrier | to announce; to proclaim; to cry out; to shout... |
| 3 | Old French | des | — |
| 4 | Old French | de | of; from |
| 5 | Latin | datum | gift, present; accusative supine of dō;... |
| 6 | Latin | datus | given; offered; yielded |
| 7 | Latin | dāre | — |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | didō | give |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | dédeh₃ti | to be giving |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | deh₃- | to give |
Words derived from “descry”