Where does “beaucoup” come from?
beaucoup (French) comes from Old French biau cop, from Latin bellus, from Latin villus, from Latin vellus, from Proto-Indo-European h₂welh₁- — to rule; strong, powerful; hair; wool.
beaucoup (French): much, very much, a lot
Ancestry of “beaucoup”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old French | biau cop | a lot; much |
| 2 | Latin | bellus | beautiful, pretty, handsome; pleasant, agreeable,... |
| 3 | Latin | villus | hair, tuft of hair, shaggy hair |
| 4 | Latin | vellus | The wool shorn from a sheep; fleece; wool; The... |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂welh₁- | to rule; strong, powerful; hair; wool |
Words derived from “beaucoup”