Where does “watermelon” come from?
Watermelon comes from English water combined with melon, which traces through Old English wæter to Latin melopeponem, Ancient Greek μηλοπέπων, ultimately from Greek μῆλον meaning apple and πέπτω meaning to ripen.
watermelon (English): A plant of the species "Citrullus lanatus",...
Definitions
- A plant of the species "Citrullus lanatus",...
Ancestry of “watermelon”, step by step
watermelon traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English melon
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | melon | Any of various plants of the family Cucurbitaceae... |
| 2 | Old French | melon | melon (fruit) |
| 3 | Latin | melonem | accusative singular of mēlō |
| 4 | Latin | melopeponem | A type of pumpkin |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | μηλοπέπων | melon, "Cucumis melo" |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | πέπων | ripe, softened; good, sweet, kind; weak, cowardly |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | pékʷeti | to be cooking; to ripen |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pekʷ- | to cook; to ripen |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | h₃-ép-kʷ- | — |
via English water
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | water | A substance found at room temperature and... |
| 2 | Middle English | water | water; water vapour, condensation; lake, pond,... |
| 3 | Old English | wæter | water |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | watar | water |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | watōr | water |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | wódr̥ | water |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | wed- | water |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | wey- | to wither; fade; to move, go ahead; to be strong;... |