Where does “detract” come from?
Detract comes from Middle French détracter, from Latin detractum, past participle of detraho meaning to draw away, from traho meaning to draw, with the prefix de-.
detract (English): To take away; to withdraw or remove; To take...
Definitions
- To take away; to withdraw or remove; To take...
Ancestry of “detract”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle French | détracter | — |
| 2 | Latin | detractum | nominative neuter singular of dētractus;... |
| 3 | Latin | detraho | I draw, pull, take or drag off, down or away;... |
| 4 | Latin | traho | I drag, pull; I trail; I extract, withdraw |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | traɣō | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | tregʰ- | to drag, pull?; to run, walk |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰregʰ- | to run |