Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “projectile” come from?

Projectile comes from Latin proiectilis, derived from Latin proiectus, the past participle of Latin proicio, combining Latin pro and Latin iacio, which traces to Proto-Indo-European pro- and Proto-Indo-European bʰuH-.

projectile (English): an object intended to be or having been fired...

Definitions

  1. an object intended to be or having been fired...

Ancestry of “projectile”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinprōiectilis—
2Latinprōiectus—
3LatinproicioI throw, thrust, drive, fling or hurl forth,...
4Latinprō-—
5Proto-Italic*pro-—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanpro-toward, forward
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpor-to give birth; forward, through; going, passage
8Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
9Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “projectile”

  • microprojectile
  • nonprojectile
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →