Where does “piledriver” come from?

piledriver (English) comes from English pile, from French pile, from Old French pile, from Latin pila, from Latin pīlus, from Latin pīlum, from Proto-Italic pistlom, from Proto-Indo-European pis-tlo- — to grind, to crush.

piledriver (English): Alternative spelling of pile driver; A move in...

Definitions

  1. Alternative spelling of pile driver; A move in...

Ancestry of “piledriver”, step by step

piledriver traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English pile

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishpileA mass of things heaped together; a heap; A group...
2Frenchpileheap, stack; pillar; battery
3Old Frenchpile
4Latinpilamortar; pillar; pier
5Latinpīlusa hair
6Latinpīluma pounder, pestle
7Proto-Italicpistlom
8Proto-Indo-Europeanpis-tlo-
9Proto-Indo-Europeanpeys-to grind, to crush

via English driver

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishdriverOne who drives something, in any sense of the...
2Middle Englishdrivere
Every word from Proto-Indo-European peys-Every word from Proto-Indo-European pis-tlo-Every word from Proto-Italic pistlom