Where does “fungus comb” come from?
fungus comb (English) comes from English honeycomb, from Middle English honycomb, from Old English huniġcamb, from Old English huniġ, from Proto-West Germanic hunag, from Proto-Germanic *hunagą, from Proto-Germanic hunangą, from Proto-Indo-European kn̥h₂onk-o-s — honey.
fungus comb (English): A slurry of masticated or partially digested wood that termites create which is subsequently digested by white rot fungus to produce a byproduct that the termites can eat
Definitions
- A slurry of masticated or partially digested wood that termites create which is subsequently digested by white rot fungus to produce a byproduct that the termites can eat
Ancestry of “fungus comb”, step by step
fungus comb traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English honeycomb
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | honeycomb | A structure of hexagonal cells made by bees... |
| 2 | Middle English | honycomb | A honeycomb mainly as food |
| 3 | Old English | huniġcamb | honeycomb |
| 4 | Old English | huniġ | honey |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | hunag | honey |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | *hunagą | — |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | hunangą | Alternative form of *hunagą |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | kn̥h₂onk-o-s | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | kn̥h₂ónks | honey |