Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “lire” come from?

Lire comes from Italian lira, from Latin libra meaning "pound" or "balance scale," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ḱel- meaning "to weigh or balance."

lire (English): Flesh, brawn, or muscle; the fleshy part of a...

Definitions

  1. Flesh, brawn, or muscle; the fleshy part of a...

Ancestry of “lire”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Italianlireplural of lira
2Italianliralira; lyre
3Latinlībra—
4Ancient Greekζυγόνyoke, for joining animals; yoke, burden; in...
5Proto-Hellenicdzugónyoke
6Proto-Indo-Europeanyugómyoke
7Proto-Indo-Europeanyewg-to join, to yoke, to tie together
Every word from Proto-Indo-European yewg- →