Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “warrior” come from?

Warrior comes from Middle English werreour, from Old French guerreier and guerroiier, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European wers- meaning to confuse or mix.

warrior (English): A person who is actively engaged in battle,...

Definitions

  1. A person who is actively engaged in battle,...

Ancestry of “warrior”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishwerreourA warrior or combatant; one who partakes in...
2Old FrenchguerreierAlternative form of guerroiier; warrior;...
3Vulgar LatinwerrizoI wage war
4Latin-izoUsed to form verbs from nouns and adjectives
5Ancient Greek-ίζεινpresent active infinitive of -ίζω; -ize
6Ancient Greek-ίζωUsed to form verbs from nouns, adjectives and...
7Proto-Hellenic-íďďō—
8Proto-Indo-European-idyéti—
9Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
10Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-—
11Chichewaiyehe, she

Words derived from “warrior”

  • warriorhood
  • warriorlike
  • warrioress
  • nonwarrior
  • antiwarrior
  • cyberwarrior
  • weekend warrior
  • roadwarrior
  • eco-warrior
  • warriors
Every word from Chichewa iye →