Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “heterosis” come from?

heterosis (English) comes from English hetero, from English heterosexual, from English -sexual, from English sexual, from Latin sexuālis, from Latin sexus, from Proto-Italic seksus, from Proto-Indo-European séksus — to cut, cut off, sever.

heterosis (English): The tendency of cross-breeding to produce an...

Definitions

  1. The tendency of cross-breeding to produce an...

Ancestry of “heterosis”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishheteroHeterosexual: of, pertaining to, or being a...
2EnglishheterosexualSexually attracted to members of the opposite...
3English-sexualForms a noun or adjective describing a state or...
4EnglishsexualArising from the fact of being male or female;...
5Latinsexuālis—
6Latinsexusdivision; sex; gender
7Proto-Italicseksus—
8Proto-Indo-Europeanséksus—
9Proto-Indo-Europeansek-to cut, cut off, sever
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sek- →