Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “peer” come from?

Peer derives from Middle English peere, from Old French per, from Latin par meaning "equal," originally denoting one of equal standing or rank.

peer (English): To look with difficulty, or as if searching for...

Definitions

  1. To look with difficulty, or as if searching for...

Ancestry of “peer”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishpeeUrine; To urinate; To drizzle
2EnglishpissUrine; An instance of pissing; Alcoholic...
3Middle Englishpissepiss, urine; Alternative form of pissen
4Middle EnglishpissenTo piss; to deliver urine from the genitals; To...
5Old Frenchpissierto piss; to excrete urine
6Vulgar Latinpissiarepresent active infinitive of *pīssiō
7LatinpissioI piss

Words derived from “peer”

  • peering
  • peeress
  • peereth
  • peery
  • overpeer
  • peeringly
  • unpeered
  • nonpeer
  • outpeer
  • peerest
  • peerer
  • peerdom
  • unpeerable
  • ultrapeer
Every word from Latin pissio →