Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “transistor” come from?

Transistor derives from English resistor and English conductance, ultimately tracing to Proto-Indo-European terh₂- meaning to cross or overcome.

transistor (English): A solid-state semiconductor device, with three...

Definitions

  1. A solid-state semiconductor device, with three...

Ancestry of “transistor”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishresistorOne who resists, especially a person who fights...
2English‐or—
3Middle English-our—
4Old French-eorAlternative form of -or
5Latin-ator-ator, -er; second-person singular future passive...
6Latin-tor-er
7Proto-Italic-tōr—
8Proto-Indo-European-tōrDerives agent nouns from verbs, denoting someone...
9Proto-Indo-European-tor-s—

Words derived from “transistor”

  • phototransistor
  • nanotransistor
  • transistorization
  • transistorize
  • transistorisation
  • transistorise
  • heterotransistor
  • transistorless
  • post-transistor
  • transistor
  • transistor
  • transístor
  • トランジスタ
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tor-s →