Where does “strait” come from?
Strait comes from Middle English streit, from Old French estreit, from Latin strictus (pulled tight), derived from Latin stringere (to bind), tracing back through Proto-Indo-European strenk-, streyg-, and (s)ter-.
strait (English): Narrow; restricted as to space or room; close;...
Definitions
- Narrow; restricted as to space or room; close;...
Ancestry of “strait”, step by step
strait traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Italian stretto
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italian | stretto | narrow; tight; strict |
| 2 | Spanish | estrecho | narrow; tight; close, kin |
| 3 | Old Spanish | estrecho | narrow |
| 4 | Latin | strictus | tightened, compressed, having been tightened;... |
| 5 | Latin | stringere | second-person singular future passive indicative... |
| 6 | Latin | stringo | I press, tighten, compress; I unsheath |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | stringō | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | streyg- | to strike; to shear |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)ter- | strong, firm, stiff, rigid; rigid, stiff; to... |