Where does “sellotape” come from?
sellotape (English) comes from English cellophane, from English cellulose, from French cellulose, from French cellule, from Latin cellula, from Latin -ulus, from Proto-Italic -olos, from Proto-Italic -elos — Forms agent nouns from verbal roots.
sellotape (English): Adhesive tape; To seal with adhesive tape
Definitions
- Adhesive tape; To seal with adhesive tape
Ancestry of “sellotape”, step by step
sellotape traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English cellophane
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | cellophane | Any of a variety of transparent plastic films,... |
| 2 | English | cellulose | A complex carbohydrate that forms the main... |
| 3 | French | cellulose | cellulose |
| 4 | French | cellule | cell; table cell |
| 5 | Latin | cellula | small room, especially that of a slave; humble... |
| 6 | Latin | -ulus | Used to form a diminutive of a noun, indicating... |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | -olos | — |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | -elos | Forms desubstantival and deadjectival diminutive nouns |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -e-lós | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -lós | Forms agent nouns from verbal roots |
via English tape
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | tape | Flexible material in a roll with a sticky surface... |
| 2 | Middle English | tape | Alternative form of tappe; band, ribbon, tape |
| 3 | Old English | tæppa | tap, spigot; band, ribbon, tape |
| 4 | Frankish | tappō | — |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | tappô | plug; tap |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | deh₂p- | to sacrifice; to lose |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | deh₂- | to share, divide |