Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “protist” come from?

protist (English) comes from French protiste, from New Latin Protista, from Ancient Greek πρώτιστος, from Ancient Greek πρῶτος, from Ancient Greek πρό, from Proto-Indo-European pró, from Proto-Indo-European per-, from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós — passed , crossed.

protist (English): Any of the eukaryotic unicellular organisms...

Definitions

  1. Any of the eukaryotic unicellular organisms...

Ancestry of “protist”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchprotisteprotist
2New LatinProtista—
3Ancient Greekπρώτιστοςthe very first
4Ancient Greekπρῶτοςfirst; earliest; foremost, most prominent
5Ancient Greekπρόbefore; before, in front, forth, forward; before,...
6Proto-Indo-Europeanprótoward, leading to
7Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
8Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “protist”

  • protistan
  • protistology
  • protistological
  • protistologist
  • protistic
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →