Where does “mottoless” come from?
mottoless (English) comes from English less, from Middle English les, from Old English lēas, from Proto-Germanic *laus.
mottoless (English): Without a motto
Ancestry of “mottoless”, step by step
mottoless traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English less
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | less | To a smaller extent or degree; comparative form... |
| 2 | Middle English | les | false; lying; deceptive; falsehood; a lie |
| 3 | Old English | lēas | false, lax; false, void, loose; devoid of, loose... |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | *laus | — |
via English motto
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | motto | A sentence, phrase, or word, forming part of an... |
| 2 | Italian | motto | witty remark; motto, maxim; posy |
| 3 | Latin | muttum | A mutter, a grunt |
| 4 | Latin | muttire | present active infinitive of muttiō; mutter, make... |