Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “foil” come from?

Foil comes from Old French fueille, from Latin folium meaning "leaf," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European bʰel-.

foil (English): A very thin sheet of metal; Thin...

Definitions

  1. A very thin sheet of metal; Thin...

Ancestry of “foil”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishfoil—
2Old Frenchfueilleleaf
3Late Latinfolianominative plural of folium; accusative plural of...
4Latinfoliuma leaf; a petal; a sheet or leaf of paper
5Proto-Italic*foljom—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰolh₃yomleaf
7Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰleh₃-bloom, flower
8Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰel-to sound; to speak, roar, bark; shiny, white; to...
9Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰōl-—

Words derived from “foil”

  • tinfoil
  • airfoil
  • foiling
  • aerofoil
  • counterfoil
  • hydrofoil
  • multifoil
  • jetfoil
  • foiler
  • octofoil
  • featherfoil
  • foileth
  • rockfoil
  • foilsman
  • polyfoil
  • blisterfoil
  • holofoil
  • dufoil
  • twifoil
  • foilable
  • foilboard
  • aerofoiled
  • tinfoilhattery
  • foilest
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰōl- →