Where does “headmistress” come from?
headmistress (English) comes from English Mistress, from Middle English maistresse, from Old French maistresse, from Old French maistre, from Latin magister, from Proto-Italic magisteros, from Proto-Indo-European méǵh₂isteros, from Proto-Indo-European méǵh₂s — big, great.
headmistress (English): A female school principal
Definitions
- A female school principal
Ancestry of “headmistress”, step by step
headmistress traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Mistress
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Mistress | Used as the title of a married woman before her... |
| 2 | Middle English | maistresse | mistress |
| 3 | Old French | maistresse | — |
| 4 | Old French | maistre | master; Master; magister |
| 5 | Latin | magister | teacher; master; a title of the Middle Ages,... |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | magisteros | bigger, greater |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | méǵh₂isteros | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | méǵh₂s | big, great |
via English head
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | head | The part of the body of an animal or human which... |
| 2 | English | -y | Added to nouns and adjectives to form adjectives... |
| 3 | Middle English | -y | Designates an adjective, in many cases formed by... |
| 4 | Old English | -iġ | -y, -ic |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | -g | Forms adjectives from nouns and verbs with a... |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -gaz | -y |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -ḱos | -y, -ic |