Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “preponderant” come from?

Preponderant comes from Latin praeponderans, the present participle of praepondero, meaning to weigh more heavily, formed from prae- meaning before or forth and ponderare meaning to weigh.

preponderant (English): Having greater or the greatest weight, quantity,...

Definitions

  1. Having greater or the greatest weight, quantity,...

Ancestry of “preponderant”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinpraeponderans
2LatinpraeponderoI preponderate
3Latinprae-before; in front; in charge
4Proto-Italicprai-—
5Proto-Indo-Europeanpreh₂-before, in front
6Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “preponderant”

  • preponderantly
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →