Where does “épouvantail” come from?
épouvantail (French) comes from French épouvanter, from Old French espoenter, from Vulgar Latin expavento, from Latin expaveō, from Latin pavor, from Latin -or, from Proto-Italic -ōs, from Proto-Indo-European -ōs — Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;...
épouvantail (French): scarecrow
Ancestry of “épouvantail”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | French | épouvanter | to terrify, horrify |
| 2 | Old French | espoenter | to scare |
| 3 | Vulgar Latin | expavento | I scare, terrify |
| 4 | Latin | expaveō | — |
| 5 | Latin | pavor | The act of trembling, quaking, throbbing or... |
| 6 | Latin | -or | used to form a third-declension masculine... |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | -ōs | Creates masculine action nouns or result nouns... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -ōs | Creates masculine and feminine action nouns or... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -oss | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -os | Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;... |