Where does “exotic” come from?
Exotic comes from Middle French exotique, from Latin exoticus, from Ancient Greek ἐξωτικός, derived from the Ancient Greek prefix ἐξω- meaning "outside" combined with Proto-Indo-European -kos and -tis suffixes.
exotic (English): Foreign, especially in an exciting way;...
Definitions
- Foreign, especially in an exciting way;...
Ancestry of “exotic”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle French | exotique | — |
| 2 | Latin | exōticus | foreign, exotic |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | ἐξωτικός | foreign, outlying, alien; uninitiated |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | ἔξω | out, out of; outside; without, except |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | σφαῖρα | ball, globe, sphere |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | -ειδής | like, connected to, from the nature of, full of;... |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | -ής | adjective suffix |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -ēs | Primarily forms adjectival bahuvrīhi compounds |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -ess | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -os | Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;... |