Where does “swimsuit” come from?
Swimsuit derives from English swim and suit, with suit tracing to Middle English swimmen, Old French sieute, and ultimately Proto-Indo-European sekʷ-, meaning to follow or pursue.
swimsuit (English): A garment worn for swimming; A tight-fitting...
Definitions
- A garment worn for swimming; A tight-fitting...
Ancestry of “swimsuit”, step by step
swimsuit traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English suit
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | suit | A set of clothes to be worn together, now... |
| 2 | Middle English | sute | Clothes or clothing; especially those that match;... |
| 3 | Anglo-Norman | suite | pursuit |
| 4 | Vulgar Latin | sequita | — |
| 5 | Latin | sequor | I follow, come or go after |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | sekʷōr | follow, come/go after |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | sékʷetor | to be following |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | sekʷ- | to follow; to see; to say |
via English swim
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | swim | To move through the water, without touching the... |
| 2 | Middle English | swime | — |
| 3 | Old English | swima | a swoon, swimming in the head |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | swimman | to swim |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | swimmaną | to be unsteady; to swim; float |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | swem(bʰ)- | to bend, turn, swing; to be unsteady, move, swim |