Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “undernourish” come from?

undernourish (English) comes from English nourish, from Middle English norischen, from Old French norrir, from Latin nūtriō, from Proto-Italic snoutrjō, from Proto-Indo-European snew-tr-ih₂, from Proto-Indo-European (s)neh₂- — to swim; to float.

undernourish (English): To provide with insufficient nourishment

Definitions

  1. To provide with insufficient nourishment

Ancestry of “undernourish”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishnourishA nurse; To feed and cause to grow; to supply...
2Middle EnglishnorischenTo nourish; to provide with food or nourishment;...
3Old Frenchnorrirto feed; to nourish
4Latinnūtriō—
5Proto-Italicsnoutrjō—
6Proto-Indo-Europeansnew-tr-ih₂female nurser
7Proto-Indo-European(s)neh₂-to swim; to float
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)neh₂- →