Where does “tremor” come from?
Tremor comes from Middle English tremour, from Old French tremor, from Latin tremor, derived from the Latin verb tremo, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root ter- meaning to shake or tremble.
tremor (English): A shake, quiver, or vibration; An earthquake; To...
Definitions
- A shake, quiver, or vibration; An earthquake; To...
Ancestry of “tremor”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | tremour | terror |
| 2 | Anglo-Norman | tremour | — |
| 3 | Old French | tremor | terror; great fear |
| 4 | Latin | tremor | trembling, quaking, tremor; first-person singular... |
| 5 | Latin | tremō | to tremble, shake, shudder at |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | tremō | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | trem- | to tremble |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ter- | tender, weak; young creature |
| 9 | Italian | termine | end, close; limit, term, date, time; term, word |
| 10 | Latin | terminus | a boundary, limit, end |
| 11 | Proto-Italic | termenos | — |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | térmn̥ | boundary, end |