Where does “pestiferous” come from?
Pestiferous comes from Latin pestiferus, from Latin pestifer, from Latin pestis, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European bʰer- meaning to carry or bear.
pestiferous (English): containing organisms that cause contagious...
Definitions
- containing organisms that cause contagious...
Ancestry of “pestiferous”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Latin | pestiferus | bearing plague |
| 2 | Latin | pestifer | pestilential; destructive, baleful, noxious,... |
| 3 | Latin | -fer | -bearing, -carrying, -bringing |
| 4 | Latin | ferō | — |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | ferō | carry, bear |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰéreti | to be carrying |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰēr- | shiny, light brown |
Words derived from “pestiferous”