Where does “morphine” come from?
Morphine comes from French morphine, combining French morphe (from Ancient Greek μορφή meaning "form") with the French suffix -ine, ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European -iHnos.
morphine (English): A crystalline alkaloid (4,5-epoxy-17-methyl-7,8-didehydromorphinan-3,6-diol), extracted from opium, the salts of which are soluble in water and are used as analgesics, anaesthetics and sedatives; it is one of a group of morphine alkaloids
Definitions
- A crystalline alkaloid (4,5-epoxy-17-methyl-7,8-didehydromorphinan-3,6-diol), extracted from opium, the salts of which are soluble in water and are used as analgesics, anaesthetics and sedatives; it is one of a group of morphine alkaloids
Ancestry of “morphine”, step by step
morphine traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via French morphine
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | morphine | morphine |
| 2 | French | -ine | feminine singular of -in; female equivalent of... |
| 3 | French | -é | past participle root verb suffix of regular -er... |
| 4 | Middle French | -é | past participle root verb suffix of regular; -ed, -en, -n |
| 5 | Old French | -é | used to form past participles of regular -er... |
| 6 | Latin | -a | suffixed to the roots of verbs, forms agent... |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | -ā | Forms masculine agent nouns from prefixed or compounded bases |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -éh₂ | — |
via German Morphin
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | Morphin | morphine |