Where does “metro-” come from?
metro- (English) comes from English metropolitan, from Late Latin metropolitanus, from Ancient Greek μητροπολίτης, from Ancient Greek μητρόπολις, from Ancient Greek πόλις, from Proto-Hellenic ptólis, from Proto-Indo-European tpólHis, from Proto-Indo-European tpelH- — fortification, city.
metro- (English): metropolitan: of or relating to the city;...
Definitions
- metropolitan: of or relating to the city;...
Ancestry of “metro-”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | metropolitan | A bishop empowered to oversee other bishops; an... |
| 2 | Late Latin | metropolitanus | metropolitan |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | μητροπολίτης | metropolitan |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | μητρόπολις | mother-state; one's mother-city, mother country,... |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | πόλις | city; a whole country, as dependent on and called... |
| 6 | Proto-Hellenic | ptólis | city |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | tpólHis | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | tpelH- | fortification, city |