Where does “life buoy” come from?
life buoy (English) comes from English buoy, from Middle English boy, from Middle Dutch boeye, from Old French boie, from Latin boia, from Ancient Greek βοείη, from Ancient Greek βοῦς, from Latin corvus — army.
life buoy (English): A buoyant object that is used as a life-saving...
Definitions
- A buoyant object that is used as a life-saving...
Ancestry of “life buoy”, step by step
life buoy traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English buoy
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | buoy | A float moored in water to mark a location, warn... |
| 2 | Middle English | boy | — |
| 3 | Middle Dutch | boeye | life buoy; float, buoy; shackle, fetter |
| 4 | Old French | boie | bond, chain; fetter, chain, clog |
| 5 | Latin | boia | fetter, collar for the neck |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | βοείη | ox hide |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | βοῦς | cow, ox, cattle; shield: ὃτι ἐκ βοείων ἐστι... |
| 8 | Latin | corvus | A raven; a bird associated with prophecy and... |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | korwos | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱorh₂wós | — |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱer- | to grow, to make grow, to nourish; to plait,... |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | kr̥- | to turn, to bend |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | ker- | army |
via English life
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | life | The state of organisms preceding their death,... |
| 2 | Middle English | lyf | life |
| 3 | Old English | līf | life, existence; life-time |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | līb | body; life |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | lībą | body; life |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | lībaną | to remain, to be left |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | leyp- | to stick; fat or sticky substance |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | lēy- | to leave, let; to want, desire; to let; leave... |