Where does “nitrogen” come from?
Nitrogen comes from French nitrogène, combining French nitre with the French suffix -gène meaning "producing," derived from Ancient Greek -γενής "producing" and Ancient Greek νίτρον "natron," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ǵenh₁- "to produce or beget."
nitrogen (English): The chemical element with an atomic number of 7...
Definitions
- The chemical element with an atomic number of 7...
Ancestry of “nitrogen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | nitrogène | nitrogen |
| 2 | French | -gène | -gen, -genic |
| 3 | Latin | -genus | born from, sprung form |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | -γενής | born in a certain place or condition; of a kind |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | -είᾱ | Superficially appears in abstract nouns derived from σ-stem adjectives, with the true suffix being |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | -ής | adjective suffix |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -ēs | Primarily forms adjectival bahuvrīhi compounds |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -ess | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -os | Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;... |