Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “galley” come from?

Galley comes from Middle English galeie, from Old French galee, from Latin galea, from Ancient Greek γαλέη, ultimately from Ancient Greek γαλεός, originally meaning a type of shark or fish.

galley (English): A long, slender ship propelled primarily by oars,...

Definitions

  1. A long, slender ship propelled primarily by oars,...

Ancestry of “galley”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishgaleie—
2Old Frenchgalee—
3Latingaleaa helmet; vocative singular of galea; ablative...
4Ancient Greekγαλέηname given to various animals of the Mustelidae...
5Proto-Indo-Europeanglī-mous
6Englishglio-Gliomatous; Glial; Embedded in a gelatinous...
7Ancient Greekγλίαglue
8Proto-Indo-European*gley-—

Words derived from “galley”

  • gally
Every word from Proto-Indo-European *gley- →