Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “missyish” come from?

missyish (English) comes from English missy, from English Miss, from English Mistress, from Middle English maistresse, from Old French maistresse, from Old French maistre, from Latin magister, from Proto-Italic magisteros — big, great.

missyish (English): Like a young woman, especially in a negative...

Definitions

  1. Like a young woman, especially in a negative...

Ancestry of “missyish”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishmissyA young female, or miss; as a term of mild...
2EnglishMissForm of address, now used chiefly for an...
3EnglishMistressUsed as the title of a married woman before her...
4Middle Englishmaistresse—
5Old Frenchmaistresse—
6Old Frenchmaistremaster; Master; magister
7Latinmagisterteacher; master; a title of the Middle Ages,...
8Proto-Italicmagisteros—
9Proto-Indo-Europeanméǵh₂isteros—
10Proto-Indo-Europeanméǵh₂sbig, great
Every word from Proto-Indo-European méǵh₂s →