Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “sternmost” come from?

sternmost (English) comes from English Stern, from English tern, from Middle English terne, from Old French terne, from Latin ternas, from Latin terni, from Latin ter, from Latin terr.

sternmost (English): Closest to the stern, furthest sternward

Definitions

  1. Closest to the stern, furthest sternward

Ancestry of “sternmost”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishStern—
2EnglishternAny of various sea birds of the family Sternidae...
3Middle Englishterne—
4Old Frenchternedull, dim
5Latinternasaccusative feminine plural of terni
6Latinternithree each; three at a time
7Latinterthrice
8Latinterr—
9Old Latintris—
10Proto-Italictrēsthree
11Proto-Indo-European*tréyes—
Every word from Proto-Indo-European *tréyes →