Where does “grizzly” come from?
Grizzly comes from English grizzle with the Middle English suffix -y, from Middle French -ie, from Latin -ia, ultimately deriving from Proto-Indo-European -kos.
grizzly (English): Grey-haired, greyish; Misspelling of grisly; A...
Definitions
- Grey-haired, greyish; Misspelling of grisly; A...
Ancestry of “grizzly”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | grizzle | A dark grey colour; Grey hair; A grey wig |
| 2 | Old French | grisel | grayish; somewhat gray |
| 3 | Old French | -el | Suffix that usually denotes a masculine noun |
| 4 | Latin | -ellus | Alternative form of -ulus; "forming masculine... |
| 5 | Latin | -ulus | Used to form a diminutive of a noun, indicating... |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | -olos | — |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | -elos | Forms desubstantival and deadjectival diminutive nouns |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -e-lós | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -lós | Forms agent nouns from verbal roots |