Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “minenwerfer” come from?

minenwerfer (English) comes from German Minenwerfer, from German Mine, from French mine, from Breton min, from Italian mina, from Latin mina, from Gaulish mēnā, from Proto-Celtic *meinis — to cut, hew.

minenwerfer (English): A type of trench mortar used by German forces...

Definitions

  1. A type of trench mortar used by German forces...

Ancestry of “minenwerfer”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanMinenwerfer—
2GermanMinea mine; pencil lead, ballpoint pen reservoir
3Frenchminemine; pencil lead; piledriver, scorcher
4Bretonminface of an animal; beak, muzzle
5Italianminamine, land mine; lead in pencils; mine which...
6LatinminaA Greek weight equal to 100 drachmas; A Greek...
7Gaulishmēnāore, mine
8Proto-Celtic*meinis—
9Proto-Indo-Europeanmēy(H)nis—
10Proto-Indo-European(s)mēy(H)-to cut, hew
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)mēy(H)- →