Where does “native speaker” come from?
native speaker (English) comes from English speaker, from English -ine, from French -ine, from French -é, from Middle French -é, from Old French -é, from Latin -a, from Proto-Italic -ā.
native speaker (English): A person who grew up with a particular language...
Definitions
- A person who grew up with a particular language...
Ancestry of “native speaker”, step by step
native speaker traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English speaker
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | speaker | One who speaks; Loudspeaker; Speakerphone |
| 2 | English | -ine | Of or pertaining to; Used to form demonyms;... |
| 3 | French | -ine | feminine singular of -in; female equivalent of... |
| 4 | French | -é | past participle root verb suffix of regular -er... |
| 5 | Middle French | -é | past participle root verb suffix of regular; -ed, -en, -n |
| 6 | Old French | -é | used to form past participles of regular -er... |
| 7 | Latin | -a | suffixed to the roots of verbs, forms agent... |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | -ā | Forms masculine agent nouns from prefixed or compounded bases |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -éh₂ | — |
via English native
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | native | Belonging to one by birth; Characteristic of or... |
| 2 | Old French | natif | — |
| 3 | Latin | nātīvus | created, made |
| 4 | Latin | nātus | born, arisen, made |
| 5 | Latin | gnātus | — |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | gnātos | born |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵn̥h₁tós | begotten, produced |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵenh₁- | to produce, to beget, to give birth |