Where does “states” come from?

State derives from Latin status, the past participle of stāre meaning "to stand," which traces to Proto-Indo-European steh₂-, the root for standing or being in position.

states (English): plural of state; Third-person singular simple...

Definitions

  1. plural of state; Third-person singular simple...

Ancestry of “states”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishstateA condition; a set of circumstances applying at...
2Old Frenchestatstate; government; condition
3Latinstātusfixed, set, having been set
4Latinstōto stand
5Proto-Italicstaēōstand
6Proto-Indo-Europeansth₂éh₁yetito stand
7Proto-Indo-European*steh₂-
Every word from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂-