Where does “polysemous” come from?
polysemous (English) comes from Medieval Latin polysemus, from Ancient Greek πολύσημος, from Ancient Greek πολύς, from Ancient Greek πόρος, from Ancient Greek πείρω, from Proto-Hellenic *péryō.
polysemous (English): Having multiple meanings or interpretations
Definitions
- Having multiple meanings or interpretations
Ancestry of “polysemous”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Medieval Latin | polysemus | Having many significations |
| 2 | Ancient Greek | πολύσημος | signifying many things, having multiple meanings,... |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | πολύς | many, a lot of; neuter πολύ or πολλά as... |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | πόρος | a means of passage, passageway, way, opening;... |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | πείρω | I pierce, run through; I cleave through |
| 6 | Proto-Hellenic | *péryō | — |
Words derived from “polysemous”