Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “liquor” come from?

Liquor comes from Middle English licour, from Old French licour, from Latin liquor, derived from the verb liqueo meaning to be fluid or melt, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European wleykʷ-.

liquor (English): A liquid, a fluid; A drinkable liquid; A liquid...

Definitions

  1. A liquid, a fluid; A drinkable liquid; A liquid...

Ancestry of “liquor”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishlicourliquid; juice, blood; A beverage or drink; a...
2Old Frenchlicourliquid; alcoholic drink; liquor
3Latinliquorfluidity, liquidity; a liquid, fluid; to be fluid...
4Latin-orused to form a third-declension masculine...
5Proto-Italic-ōsCreates masculine action nouns or result nouns...
6Proto-Indo-European-ōsCreates masculine and feminine action nouns or...
7Proto-Indo-European-oss—
8Proto-Indo-European-osCreates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;...

Words derived from “liquor”

  • antiliquor
  • liquory
  • liquorless
  • liquorlike
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -os →