Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “translator” come from?

Translator comes from Middle English translatour, from Old French translator, from Latin translator, derived from translatus, the past participle of transfero meaning "to carry across," from ferre meaning "to carry," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European bʰer-.

translator (English): A person who translates text, film, or other...

Definitions

  1. A person who translates text, film, or other...

Ancestry of “translator”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishtranslatourtranslator
2Old Frenchtranslator—
3Latintrānslātor—
4Latintrānslātus—
5Latintrānsferō—
6Latinferō—
7Proto-Italicferōcarry, bear
8Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰéretito be carrying
9Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰēr-shiny, light brown

Words derived from “translator”

  • translatress
  • translatorship
  • translatorese
  • translatrix
  • pretranslator
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰēr- →