Where does “plainclothed” come from?
plainclothed (English) comes from English plain, from Middle English pleyn, from Anglo-Norman pleyn, from Old French playn, from Old French plain, from Latin plēnus, from Proto-Italic plēnos, from Proto-Indo-European pl̥h₁nós — to fill.
plainclothed (English): plainclothes; wearing ordinary clothes instead of...
Definitions
- plainclothes; wearing ordinary clothes instead of...
Ancestry of “plainclothed”, step by step
plainclothed traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English plain
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | plain | Flat, level; Simple; Obvious |
| 2 | Middle English | pleyn | clear; unambiguous |
| 3 | Anglo-Norman | pleyn | Alternative form of plein |
| 4 | Old French | playn | — |
| 5 | Old French | plain | full; plain; flat |
| 6 | Latin | plēnus | full; filled; complete |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | plēnos | full |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pl̥h₁nós | full |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | pleh₁- | to fill |
via English clothed
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | clothed | simple past tense and past participle of clothe;... |
| 2 | English | cloth | A woven fabric such as used in dressing,... |
| 3 | Middle English | cloþ | Alternative form of cloth; cloth, garment |
| 4 | Old English | clāþ | cloth, clothes, covering, sail |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | klaiþą | cloth |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | gleyt- | to cling to, cleave, stick |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | gley- | to glue, paste, stick together; to glue, stick... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | gel- | to be cold, to freeze |