Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “precession” come from?

Precession comes from Middle English precession, from Medieval Latin praecessio, from Latin praecedo (to go before), combining prae (before) with cedo (to go), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European preh₂- and per-.

precession (English): Precedence; The wobbling motion of the axis of a...

Definitions

  1. Precedence; The wobbling motion of the axis of a...

Ancestry of “precession”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishprecessioun—
2Medieval Latinpraecessio—
3Latinpraecēdō—
4Latinprae-before; in front; in charge
5Proto-Italicprai-—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanpreh₂-before, in front
7Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
8Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “precession”

  • precessional
  • precessionally
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →