Where does “wintertime” come from?
Wintertime comes from Middle English winter, Old English winter, Latin thema, and Ancient Greek θέμα, ultimately from the root τίθημι meaning to place or put.
wintertime (English): The season of winter, between autumn and spring
Definitions
- The season of winter, between autumn and spring
Ancestry of “wintertime”, step by step
wintertime traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Time
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Time | The inevitable progression into the future with the passing of present and past events |
| 2 | Middle English | tyme | thyme; time; A specific duration or period of... |
| 3 | Old French | thym | — |
| 4 | Latin | thymum | thyme; accusative singular of thymus |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | θύμον | thyme |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | θύω | I offer in sacrifice, slay, burn, immolate; I... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰewh₂- | smoke; mist, haze |