Where does “flame” come from?
Flame comes from Middle English flaume, from Old French flame, from Latin flamma, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European bʰel- meaning to shine or burn.
flame (English): The visible part of fire; a stream of burning...
Definitions
- The visible part of fire; a stream of burning...
Ancestry of “flame”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | flawme | A flame; a visible tongue of gas and vapour... |
| 2 | Middle English | flaume | Alternative form of flawme; Alternative form of... |
| 3 | Old French | flamble | — |
| 4 | Latin | flammula | a little flame |
| 5 | Latin | flamma | flame, fire |
| 6 | Latin | flāgrāre | — |
| 7 | Latin | frāgrō | to emit a smell of, to smell of, to be redolent of, to reek of |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | frāgrāō | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰreh₂gro- | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰreh₂g- | to smell |