Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “infrared” come from?

Infrared derives from English red combined with the prefix infra-, from Latin inferus meaning "below," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European h₁rowdʰós and kret-.

infrared (English): electromagnetic radiation of a wavelength longer...

Definitions

  1. electromagnetic radiation of a wavelength longer...

Ancestry of “infrared”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishinfraDiscussed later; Infrastructure
2Latininfrabelow
3Latinīnferā—
4Frenchinférerto infer
5Latinīnferō—
6Latinīn-—
7Latinîn—
8Latinenlookǃ beholdǃ; reallyǃ?; come onǃ
9Proto-Italicenin
10Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁énin

Words derived from “infrared”

  • midinfrared
  • noninfrared
  • near infrared
  • อินฟราเรด
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁én →