Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “stewardess” come from?

Stewardess derives from English steward plus the feminine suffix -esse, from Old French -esse, from Latin -issa, from Ancient Greek -ισσα, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European steygʰ-, the root of steward meaning to stand firm or guard.

stewardess (English): A female flight attendant

Definitions

  1. A female flight attendant

Ancestry of “stewardess”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-essSuffix appended to words to make a female...
2French-esseused to form nouns describing the condition of...
3Italian-essa-ess
4Portuguese-esafeminine singular of -ês
5Spanish-esafeminine singular of -és
6Spanish-ésForms nouns and adjectives of nationality;...
7Spanishpolíticapolitics; policy; female equivalent of político
8Spanishpolíticopolitical; in-law; politician
9Latinpolīticus—
10Swedishpolitiskpolitical, having to do with politics
11Swedishpolitikpolitics
12Ancient Greekπολιτικόςcivic, constitutional, public; social
13Ancient Greekπολῑ́τηςcitizen
14Ancient Greekπόλιςcity; a whole country, as dependent on and called...
15Proto-Hellenicptóliscity
16Proto-Indo-EuropeantpólHis—
17Proto-Indo-EuropeantpelH-fortification, city

Words derived from “stewardess”

  • стюардесса
  • スチュワーデス
  • stewardesa
  • stjuardesa
  • stewardesă
Every word from Proto-Indo-European tpelH- →