Where does “mothership” come from?

mothership (English) comes from English ship, from English relationship, from English relation, from Middle English relacion, from Old French relacion, from Latin relātiō, from Latin referō, from Latin rĕ- — passed , crossed.

mothership (English): Alternative spelling of mother ship; The state of...

Definitions

  1. Alternative spelling of mother ship; The state of...

Ancestry of “mothership”, step by step

mothership traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English ship

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishshipA water-borne vessel generally larger than a...
2EnglishrelationshipConnection or association; the condition of being...
3EnglishrelationThe manner in which two things may be associated;...
4Middle Englishrelacion
5Old Frenchrelacion
6Latinrelātiōcarrying or bringing back
7Latinreferōto bear, bring, drive, or carry back, off, or away
8Latinrĕ-back, backwards
9Latinprōdūcōto lead or bring forth, forward or out
10Latinprō-forward direction, forward movement
11Proto-Italic*pro-pro- see the Latin entry for further meanings
12Proto-Indo-Europeanpro-toward, forward
13Proto-Indo-Europeanpor-to give birth; forward, through; going, passage
14Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
15Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

via English mother

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishmotherA female who has given birth to a baby; A human...
2Middle Englishmodrenplural of moder
3Middle English-enDenotes the past participle form when attached to...
4Old English-enmæġþ + API → mæġden; cocc + API → cycen, cicen;...
5Old Norse-innUsed to create adjectives from nouns, meaning...
6Proto-Norse-īna-
7Proto-Germanic-īnaz-en
8Proto-Indo-European-iHnosCreates adjectives of materials
9Proto-Indo-European-no-adjectival suffix
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tósEvery word from Proto-Indo-European per-Every word from Latin rĕ-