Where does “webmistress” come from?
webmistress (English) comes from English Mistress, from Middle English maistresse, from Old French maistresse, from Old French maistre, from Latin magister, from Proto-Italic magisteros, from Proto-Indo-European méǵh₂isteros, from Proto-Indo-European méǵh₂s — big, great.
webmistress (English): A female webmaster
Definitions
- A female webmaster
Ancestry of “webmistress”, step by step
webmistress traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Mistress
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Mistress | Used as the title of a married woman before her... |
| 2 | Middle English | maistresse | mistress |
| 3 | Old French | maistresse | — |
| 4 | Old French | maistre | master; Master; magister |
| 5 | Latin | magister | teacher; master; a title of the Middle Ages,... |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | magisteros | bigger, greater |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | méǵh₂isteros | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | méǵh₂s | big, great |
via English Web
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Web | The World Wide Web |
| 2 | Middle English | webbe | Weaved fabric; fabric manufactured by weaving; A... |
| 3 | Old English | webba | weaver |
| 4 | Old English | -a | Ending forming adverbs; nominative masculine... |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | -ō | Creates feminine nouns from roots and stems |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -ô | -ly; Forms agent nouns, often from the zero-grade... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -ō | Derives nouns from roots |