Etymology Explorer › French

Where does “genou” come from?

genou (French) comes from Old French genoil, from Latin genuculum, from Latin geniculum, from Latin -culus, from Proto-Italic *-kelos.

genou (French): knee; lap

Definitions

  1. knee; lap

Ancestry of “genou”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchgenoilknee
2Latingenuculum—
3Latingeniculumknee; little knot
4Latin-culusAlternative form of -ulus; added to a noun to...
5Proto-Italic*-kelos—

Words derived from “genou”

  • ragenouiller
  • genouillère
  • agenouillade
  • agenouilliste
  • agenouiller
  • agenouillement
Every word from Proto-Italic *-kelos →