Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “greenback” come from?

Greenback is a blend of green and back, where back derives from French bac, Middle English bakke, Old Swedish nattbakka, Latin bassus, Ancient Greek βάσις, and Proto-Indo-European gʷémtis, originally meaning a base or foundation.

greenback (English): Any bill that is legal tender in the US issued...

Definitions

  1. Any bill that is legal tender in the US issued...

Ancestry of “greenback”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishbackNear the rear; Not current; Far from the main...
2Frenchbacferry; vat; high school exit exam in France; A...
3Frenchbaccalauréatbaccalaureat; bachelor's degree
4Medieval Latinbaccalaureatusbachelor's degree
5Latinbaccalaureusbachelor
6Latinlaurealaurel, bay tree; crown, wreath or branch of...
7Latinlauruslaurel tree; laurels; a crown of laurel
8English-aceousOf, relating to, resembling or containing the...
9Latin-āceus—
10Latin-āx—
11Latin-iumSuffix used to form abstract nouns, sometimes...
12Latin-iusforming adjectives from nouns; nominative neuter...
13Proto-Italic-jōsForms comparative adjectives
14Proto-Indo-European-yósCreates adjectives from noun or verb stems

Words derived from “greenback”

  • Greenbacker
  • greenbackism
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -yós →