Etymology Explorer › French

Where does “frère” come from?

frère (French) comes from Old French frere, from Latin frāter, from Proto-Italic frātēr, from Proto-Indo-European bʰréh₂tēr — brother.

frère (French): brother

Definitions

  1. brother

Ancestry of “frère”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchfrerebrother
2Latinfrāter—
3Proto-Italicfrātērbrother
4Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰréh₂tērbrother

Words derived from “frère”

  • affrèrement
  • frérot
  • beau-frère
  • frè
  • frer
  • frer
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰréh₂tēr →