Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “reusable” come from?

Reusable comes from English reuse plus the suffix -able, derived from Old French -able, from Latin -abilis (capable of being), attached to Latin re- (again) and Latin ut (to use), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European wer-.

reusable (English): Able to be used again; especially after salvaging...

Definitions

  1. Able to be used again; especially after salvaging...

Ancestry of “reusable”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishreuseThe act of salvaging or in some manner restoring...
2Englishre-again, anew; a completive or intensification of...
3Middle Englishre-—
4Old Frenchre-re-
5Latinrĕ-—
6Latinprōdūcō—
7Latinprō-—
8Proto-Italic*pro-—
9Proto-Indo-Europeanpro-toward, forward
10Proto-Indo-Europeanpor-to give birth; forward, through; going, passage
11Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
12Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “reusable”

  • nonreusable
  • unreusable
  • reusably
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →