Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “plantain” come from?

Plantain comes from Middle English planteyn, from Spanish plátano, from Latin platanus, from Ancient Greek πλάτανος, ultimately from the root πλατύς meaning broad, reflecting the tree's wide leaves.

plantain (English): A plant of the genus "Plantago", with a rosette...

Definitions

  1. A plant of the genus "Plantago", with a rosette...

Ancestry of “plantain”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishplanteyne—
2Anglo-Normanplainteine—
3Old Frenchplaintain—
4Latinplantāgō—
5Latinplantaany vegetable production that serves to propagate...
6Proto-Italicplāntā—
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpléh₂-n̥t-eh₂—
8Proto-Indo-Europeanpleh₂-flat
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pleh₂- →