Where does “officeholding” come from?
officeholding (English) comes from English Office, from Middle English office, from Old French office, from Latin officium, from Latin opificium, from Latin opifex, from Latin Ops, from Latin oscen — to throw, reach, pierce; to hit by throwing.
officeholding (English): The holding of an office
Definitions
- The holding of an office
Ancestry of “officeholding”, step by step
officeholding traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Office
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Office | A ceremonial duty or service, particularly |
| 2 | Middle English | office | The state of being employed or having a work or... |
| 3 | Old French | office | office; service |
| 4 | Latin | officium | duty, service; office; obligation, an obligatory... |
| 5 | Latin | opificium | work |
| 6 | Latin | opifex | Someone who does work (especially creative or constructive); worker, maker, framer, fabricator, workman, mechanic, artificer, craftsman, inventor, artist, artisan |
| 7 | Latin | Ops | earth goddess, fertility deity |
| 8 | Latin | oscen | any bird by whose song cries augurs divined... |
| 9 | Latin | opscen | — |
| 10 | Latin | ob- | towards; against |
| 11 | Latin | obolus | obolus (Greek coin) |
| 12 | Ancient Greek | ὀβολός | obol, obolus, used at Athens as both a weight and... |
| 13 | Ancient Greek | ὀβελός | a spit, rod; a horizontal line |
| 14 | Ancient Greek | βέλος | missile, arrow, dart; weapon; something quickly... |
| 15 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷélHos | — |
| 16 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷelH- | to throw, reach, pierce; to hit by throwing |
via English holding
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | holding | Something that one owns, especially stocks and... |
| 2 | English | hold | To grasp or grip; To contain or store; "To... |
| 3 | English | hole | A hollow place or cavity; an excavation; a pit;... |
| 4 | Middle English | hole | healthy; safe; whole, complete, full |
| 5 | Old English | hol | a hole, a hollow; calumny; slander |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | hol | hollow; hole |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | hulą | a hollow; depression; hole |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | hulaz | hollow |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱel- | to cover; to incline |