Where does “tenor” come from?
Tenor comes from Middle English tenour, from Anglo-Norman tenour, from Latin tenor, the noun form of teneo meaning to hold or maintain.
tenor (English): A musical range or section higher than bass and...
Definitions
- A musical range or section higher than bass and...
Ancestry of “tenor”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | tenour | The intended message or purpose of something;... |
| 2 | Anglo-Norman | tenour | Alternative form of tenor; Alternative form of... |
| 3 | Old French | tenor | holder; possessor; possession; content |
| 4 | Latin | tenor | a holding on, continuance, course, career,... |
| 5 | Latin | -or | used to form a third-declension masculine... |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | -ōs | Creates masculine action nouns or result nouns... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -ōs | Creates masculine and feminine action nouns or... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -oss | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -os | Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;... |