Where does “metal detector” come from?
metal detector (English) comes from English metal, from French métal, from German metall, from Italian metallo, from Spanish metal, from Old Spanish metal, from Old French métal, from Latin metallum — to mine, quarry.
metal detector (English): A hand-held device that uses electromagnetic...
Definitions
- A hand-held device that uses electromagnetic...
Ancestry of “metal detector”, step by step
metal detector traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English metal
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | metal | "Chemical elements or alloys, and the mines where... |
| 2 | French | métal | metal |
| 3 | German | metall | metal |
| 4 | Italian | metallo | metal |
| 5 | Spanish | metal | metal |
| 6 | Old Spanish | metal | metal |
| 7 | Old French | métal | metal material |
| 8 | Latin | metallum | metal; precious metals, especially gold or... |
| 9 | Ancient Greek | μέταλλον | A mine, quarry, or salt pit; metal |
| 10 | Ancient Greek | μέταλλευειν | to mine, quarry |
via English detector
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | detector | A device capable of registering a specific... |
| 2 | English | detect | to discover or find by careful search,... |
| 3 | Latin | detectus | uncovered, revealed, disclosed |
| 4 | Latin | dē- | of; from |
| 5 | Latin | dē | of; concerning; about |
| 6 | Latin | post | behind; after, since, besides, except; behind,... |
| 7 | Latin | poste | ablative singular of postis |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | posti | behind, after |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | pósti | after |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | pós | afterwards, post; by, at |