Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “rhinoceros” come from?

Rhinoceros comes from Latin rhinoceros, from Ancient Greek ῥινόκερως, combining Ancient Greek ῥίνη (nose) and κέρας (horn), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ḱerh₂-.

rhinoceros (English): Any of several large herbivorous pachyderms...

Definitions

  1. Any of several large herbivorous pachyderms...

Ancestry of “rhinoceros”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinrhīnocerōs—
2Ancient Greekῥινόκερωςrhinoceros
3Ancient Greekκέραςhorn; horn as a material, or anything made of...
4Proto-Hellenic*kérats—

Words derived from “rhinoceros”

  • rhinoceroslike
  • rhinocerical
  • rhinoseros
Every word from Proto-Hellenic *kérats →