Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “postoperative” come from?

Postoperative comes from English operative combined with Latin post (after), Latin poste (after), Latin postis (post or stake), Proto-Indo-European pósti, and Proto-Indo-European pós (to place or set).

postoperative (English): Of, relating to, or occurring in the period after...

Definitions

  1. Of, relating to, or occurring in the period after...

Ancestry of “postoperative”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishoperativeEffectual or important; Functional, in working...
2Middle Englishoperative—
3Middle Frenchoperatif—
4Latinoperativuscreative, formative
5Latinoperō—
6LatinOpus—
7Ancient GreekὈποῦς—
8Ancient Greekὀπόςjuice, vegetable/plant juice; fig-juice
9Proto-Indo-Europeansokʷósjuice of plants
10Proto-Indo-Europeansekʷ-to follow; to see; to say
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sekʷ- →