Where does “serpentine” come from?

Serpentine comes from Old French serpentin, derived from Latin serpentinus, an adjective formed from Latin serpo meaning to creep or crawl, with Proto-Indo-European roots serp- and the suffix -no-.

serpentine (English): Of, pertaining to, or characteristic of snakes;...

Definitions

  1. Of, pertaining to, or characteristic of snakes;...

Ancestry of “serpentine”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchserpentin—
2Latinserpentīnusserpentine; of or pertaining to a serpent or snake
3Latin-īnusof or pertaining to; -ine
4Proto-Italic-īnosof/belonging to
5Proto-Indo-European-iHnosCreates adjectives of materials
6Proto-Indo-European-no-adjectival suffix

Words derived from “serpentine”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European -no- →Every word from Latin -īnus →Every word from Proto-Italic -īnos →
serpentine — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer