Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “hibernation” come from?

Hibernation comes from Latin hibernatus, the past participle of hiberno meaning to winter, derived from hibernus meaning wintry, from hiems meaning winter, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰey-.

hibernation (English): A state of inactivity and metabolic depression in...

Definitions

  1. A state of inactivity and metabolic depression in...

Ancestry of “hibernation”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinhibernātus—
2Latinhībernō—
3Latinhībernus—
4Proto-Indo-Europeanǵʰey-winter
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰey- →