Where does “firepower” come from?
Firepower derives from English fire plus power, which comes from Middle English poer, Old French pooir, Proto-Germanic fōr, and Latin potens, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European pótis meaning master or able.
firepower (English): the capacity of a weapon to deliver fire onto a...
Definitions
- the capacity of a weapon to deliver fire onto a...
Ancestry of “firepower”, step by step
firepower traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Power
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Power | A button of a computer, a video game console, or... |
| 2 | Middle English | power | Ability, power or capability |
| 3 | Anglo-Norman | poer | — |
| 4 | Latin | potēre | — |
| 5 | Latin | posse | present active infinitive of possum "to be able... |
| 6 | Latin | potis | able, capable, possible |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | potis | master, in control of |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pótis | master, ruler; husband |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | ph₃tis | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | peh₃- | to drink |
via English fire
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | fire | A chemical reaction involving the bonding of... |
| 2 | Middle English | fier | Alternative form of figer |
| 3 | Old English | fȳr | fire |
| 4 | Old English | feor | Alternative form of feorr; far |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | ferrai | far, distant |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | per-nóy | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |