Where does “messmate” come from?

Messmate comes from English mate, Middle English mes, Old English mēse, Vulgar Latin mesa, Latin mensa meaning table, and ultimately Proto-Indo-European ḱóm.

messmate (English): an associate with whom one shares a mess on a...

Definitions

  1. an associate with whom one shares a mess on a...

Ancestry of “messmate”, step by step

messmate traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English mess

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishmessA disagreeable mixture or confusion of things;...
2Middle Englishmesserving
3Old Frenchmesbut; my
4Latinmagismore; more greatly; better
5Dutchmagischmagical, controlled or determined by supernatural...
6Dutchmagiemagic, sorcery occult woo, black or white magic, etc.; hence supernatural occurrences or phenonomena
7Frenchmagiemagic; A magical, surprising, fascinating feat;...
8Middle Frenchmagie
9Latinmagīamagic, sorcery
10Ancient Greekμαγείαtheology of the Magians
11Ancient GreekΜάγοςmagician, and derogatorily sorcerer, trickster,...
12Old Persian𐎶𐎦𐏁priest
13Proto-Iranianmagúš
14Proto-Indo-Iranianmagʰúš
15Proto-Indo-Europeanmegʰ-ú-s

via English maté

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishmatéAn evergreen tree, Ilex paraquariensis, native to...
2Middle Englishmatemate companion, comrade
3Middle Low Germanmāte
4Old Saxongimato
5Proto-Germanicgamatjô
6Proto-Germanicga-Indicates association or togetherness; co-;...
7Proto-Indo-Europeanḱómbeside, near, by, with
8Proto-Indo-EuropeanḱeDeictic particle, here; Post-positional...
9Middle Englishkyt
10Germankittputty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes
11Old High Germankuti
12Proto-West Germanickwidugum, resin
13Proto-Germanickweduzresin
14Proto-Indo-Europeangʷet-resin, gum; to say, speak
15Proto-Indo-Europeangū-to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European megʰ-ú-sEvery word from Proto-Indo-Iranian magʰúšEvery word from Proto-Iranian magúš