Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “electrostatic” come from?

Electrostatic derives from English electric, from Latin ēlectrum, from Ancient Greek ēlektron, originally denoting amber, the substance whose rubbing produces electrical effects.

electrostatic (English): of, relating to, or produced by electrostatics or...

Definitions

  1. of, relating to, or produced by electrostatics or...

Ancestry of “electrostatic”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishstaticUnchanging; that cannot or does not change;...
2Frenchstatiquestatic
3New Latinstaticus—
4Ancient Greekστατικόςcausing to stand, coming to a standstill, rest
5Ancient Greekἵστημιto make to stand, to stand, set; to stop, stay,...
6Proto-Hellenichístāmito stand
7Proto-Indo-Europeanstísteh₂tito be standing up, to be getting up
8Proto-Indo-Europeansteh₂-to stand

Words derived from “electrostatic”

  • electrostatically
  • nonelectrostatic
Every word from Proto-Indo-European steh₂- →