Where does “messieurs” come from?
Messieurs comes from French messieurs, the plural of monsieur, from Old French sire, ultimately from Latin senior meaning "elder" or "older person."
messieurs (English): plural of monsieur
Definitions
- plural of monsieur
Ancestry of “messieurs”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | monsieur | A man, especially a French gentleman |
| 2 | French | Monsieur | Alternative letter-case form of monsieur Used to... |
| 3 | French | mon | my; Followed by rank, obligatory way of... |
| 4 | French | oncle | uncle |
| 5 | Middle French | oncle | uncle |
| 6 | Old French | oncle | uncle |
| 7 | Vulgar Latin | aunclum | — |
| 8 | Latin | avunculus | maternal uncle, mother's brother; mother's... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂éwh₂os | maternal grandfather; maternal uncle |