Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “footnote” come from?

Footnote derives from English foot and note, where note comes from Italian nota, from Latin nota meaning "mark" or "written record," ultimately from Latin noscere meaning "to know."

footnote (English): A short piece of text, often numbered, placed at...

Definitions

  1. A short piece of text, often numbered, placed at...

Ancestry of “footnote”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfootA biological structure found in many animals that...
2Middle Englishfotfoot; The bottom, lower part or foundation of...
3Old Englishfōtfoot
4Proto-West Germanicfōtfoot
5Proto-Germanicfōtsfoot
6Proto-Indo-Europeanpṓdsfoot
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpóds—
8Proto-Indo-Europeanped-to walk, to step; to stumble, to fall

Words derived from “footnote”

  • footnoter
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ped- →