Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “sailor” come from?

Sailor comes from Middle English sailour, from Old French saileur, meaning "one who sails," derived from Old French sail, from Latin salum, meaning "sea."

sailor (English): A person in the business of navigating ships or...

Definitions

  1. A person in the business of navigating ships or...

Ancestry of “sailor”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishsailerThat which sails; a boat; A fastball that skims...
2English-erA person or thing that does an action indicated...
3Middle English-eragentive suffix; agent noun suffix
4Old French-erAlternative form of -ier, verbal suffix;...
5Latin-āre—
6Proto-Italic-āōForms primarily denominative verbs
7Proto-Indo-European-eh₂yétiCreates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive...
8Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
9Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-—
10Chichewaiyehe, she

Words derived from “sailor”

  • sailor
  • sailer
  • sailorman
  • sailoring
  • sailorly
  • sailorlike
  • unsailorlike
  • sailorless
  • daysailer
  • motorsailer
  • nonsailor
  • boardsailor
  • daysailor
  • sailorwoman
  • sailorize
  • sailoress
  • sela
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