Where does “monorail” come from?
Monorail comes from French monorail, combining French mono- with English rail, where rail derives from Latin rego meaning "to rule" or "to direct."
monorail (English): a railroad system where the trains run on one...
Definitions
- a railroad system where the trains run on one...
Ancestry of “monorail”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | monorail | of or relating to monorail; monorail |
| 2 | French | rail | rail |
| 3 | English | rail | A horizontal bar extending between supports and... |
| 4 | Middle English | rail | — |
| 5 | Old English | regol | a rule; a ruler |
| 6 | Latin | rēgula | rule, bar |
| 7 | Latin | -ula | regō + API → rēgula; tegō + API → tēgula;... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -tlom | Alternative form of *-trom |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -trom | Forms nouns denoting a tool or instrument |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -tḗr | Derives agent nouns from verbs, denoting someone... |