Where does “motoneige” come from?
motoneige (French) comes from French neige, from French neiger, from Old French negier, from Vulgar Latin nivicare, from Latin nix, from Latin -eus, from Ancient Greek -εῖος, from Proto-Indo-European -iHwós — Creates adjectives from verb stems.
motoneige (French): snowmobile
Definitions
- snowmobile
Ancestry of “motoneige”, step by step
motoneige traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via French neige
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | neige | snow, crystalline frozen precipitation; cocaine,... |
| 2 | French | neiger | to snow |
| 3 | Old French | negier | to snow |
| 4 | Vulgar Latin | nivicare | present active infinitive of *nivicō |
| 5 | Latin | nix | snow; white hair |
| 6 | Latin | -eus | argentum + API → argenteus; ferrum + API →... |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | -εῖος | Forms adjectives, usually with a meaning of "of"... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -iHwós | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -wós | Creates adjectives from verb stems |
via French moto
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | moto | bike, motorbike |
| 2 | French | motocyclette | motorcycle |