Where does “train” come from?
Train comes from Old French train, from Middle French traïne, from Old French traïr, from Latin traho meaning to pull or drag, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European terh₂-.
train (English): Elongated portion; Connected sequence of people...
Definitions
- Elongated portion; Connected sequence of people...
Ancestry of “train”, step by step
train traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English train
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | train | — |
| 2 | Old French | train | a delay, a drawing out |
| 3 | Old French | traïner | Alternative form of trainer; to pull out, to draw |
| 4 | Vulgar Latin | traginare | present active infinitive of *traginō |
| 5 | Latin | tragēre | — |
| 6 | Latin | trahere | second-person singular future passive indicative... |
| 7 | Latin | traho | I drag, pull; I trail; I extract, withdraw |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | traɣō | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | tregʰ- | to drag, pull?; to run, walk |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰregʰ- | to run |