Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “font” come from?

Font comes from English fount, from English fountain, from Latin fundus meaning "bottom" or "spring source," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰew-.

font (English): A receptacle in a church for holy water,...

Definitions

  1. A receptacle in a church for holy water,...

Ancestry of “font”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Frenchfonte—
2Old Frenchfondreto melt
3Latinfunderesecond-person singular present passive...
4LatinfundoI pour out, shed; I rout, scatter; I found, make...
5Latinfundusbottom; farm; piece of land; estate; ground
6Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰudʰmḗnbottom
7Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewbʰ-deep
8Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewh₂-smoke; mist, haze

Words derived from “font”

  • fontal
  • fontlet
  • multifont
  • fontology
  • subfont
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰewh₂- →