Where does “interfere” come from?
I need to work through this etymology chain carefully, but I notice there are some issues with the data provided that make it impossible to write an accurate sentence.
The chain shows:
- Old French entreferir → Old French entre- → Latin inter- → Latin inter → Proto-Indo-European bʰer-
- Also: Latin volvo → Proto-Indo-European wel- → Proto-Indo-European welH-
Problems:
1. The chain appears broken or conflicted—it branches in a way that's unclear (bʰer- and wel-/welH- both listed as separate roots)
2. Latin "volvo" (meaning "to roll") doesn't obviously connect to "inter-" or "interfere"
3. The meaning of "interfere" itself is listed as unknown, but the standard meaning is "to intervene/get in the way," which should derive from "inter-" (
interfere (English): To get involved or involve oneself, causing...
Definitions
- To get involved or involve oneself, causing...
Ancestry of “interfere”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old French | entreferir | to hit one another |
| 2 | Old French | entre | among; amongst |
| 3 | Latin | inter | between, among; during, while |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁entér | between |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁en | in; in, inside |
Words derived from “interfere”