Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “macronucleus” come from?

macronucleus (English) comes from English macro-, from French macro-, from Latin macro-, from Ancient Greek μακρός, from Proto-Italic makros, from Proto-Indo-European mh₂ḱrós, from Proto-Indo-European meh₂ḱ- — to raise, increase; long.

macronucleus (English): The larger of the two nuclei present in ciliate...

Definitions

  1. The larger of the two nuclei present in ciliate...

Ancestry of “macronucleus”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Englishmacro-large; long; inclusive
2Frenchmacro-macro-
3Latinmacro-large
4Ancient Greekμακρόςlong; tall, deep; far, distant
5Proto-Italicmakros—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanmh₂ḱróslean, meager
7Proto-Indo-Europeanmeh₂ḱ-to raise, increase; long
Every word from Proto-Indo-European meh₂ḱ- →