Where does “maternally” come from?
Maternally comes from Middle English -ly (adverbial suffix) applied to Middle French maternel, from Latin maternus meaning "of or belonging to a mother," derived from Latin mater "mother."
maternally (English): In a maternal manner; motherly, as a mother
Definitions
- In a maternal manner; motherly, as a mother
Ancestry of “maternally”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | maternal | Of or pertaining to a mother; having the... |
| 2 | Middle English | maternal | — |
| 3 | Middle French | maternel | maternal |
| 4 | Latin | māternus | of or pertaining to a mother, maternal |
| 5 | Latin | -nus | -an |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | -nos | Creates verbal adjectives from verb stems |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -nós | Creates verbal adjectives from roots |