Where does “ex-boyfriend” come from?
ex-boyfriend (English) comes from English ex, from English expensive, from Latin expensivus, from Latin expendo, from Latin ex-, from Latin e, from Latin ex, from Latin commūnicō — to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,...
ex-boyfriend (English): A former boyfriend
Definitions
- A former boyfriend
Ancestry of “ex-boyfriend”, step by step
ex-boyfriend traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English ex
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | ex | The name of the Latin-script letter X; To delete;... |
| 2 | English | expensive | Given to expending a lot of money; profligate,... |
| 3 | Latin | expensivus | — |
| 4 | Latin | expendo | I weigh; I pay out; I judge |
| 5 | Latin | ex- | out, away; throughout; thoroughly |
| 6 | Latin | e | The name of the letter "E"; out of, from |
| 7 | Latin | ex | A name of the letter "X"; out of, from |
| 8 | Latin | commūnicō | to impart, share |
| 9 | Latin | commūnis | common, commonplace, ordinary, general, universal, shared, shared alike, of both sides, belonging to two or more together |
| 10 | Old Latin | com(m)oinis | — |
| 11 | Proto-Italic | kommoinis | common |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱom-moy-ni- | held in common |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱóm | beside, near, by, with |
| 14 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 15 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 16 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 17 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 18 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 19 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 20 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 21 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |
via English boyfriend
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | boyfriend | A male partner in an unmarried romantic... |
| 2 | English | boy | A young male; A male child: a son of any age; A... |
| 3 | Middle English | boye | servant, commoner, knave, boy |
| 4 | Old English | bōia | boy |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | bōjô | younger brother, young male relation |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | bō- | A stem meaning "father, brother, close male... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰā- | to say |