Where does “plain” come from?
Plain comes from Old French plain, from Latin planum, from Ancient Greek πλάνος, tracing back through Proto-Indo-European pleh₁- and pleh₂-.
plain (English): Flat, level; Simple; Obvious
Definitions
- Flat, level; Simple; Obvious
Ancestry of “plain”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | pleyn | clear; unambiguous |
| 2 | Anglo-Norman | pleyn | Alternative form of plein |
| 3 | Old French | playn | — |
| 4 | Old French | plain | full; plain; flat |
| 5 | Latin | plēnus | — |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | plēnos | full |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | pl̥h₁nós | full |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pleh₁- | to fill |
Words derived from “plain”