Where does “phénakistiscope” come from?
phénakistiscope (French) comes from Ancient Greek φενακιστής, from French -scope, from Ancient Greek σκοπέω, from Ancient Greek σκοπός, from Ancient Greek σκέπτομαι, from Proto-Hellenic sképťomai, from Proto-Indo-European spéḱyeti, from Proto-Indo-European speḱ- — to see, to look, to observe.
Ancestry of “phénakistiscope”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Ancient Greek | φενακιστής | cheat, imposter |
| 2 | French | -scope | -scope |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | σκοπέω | I look, look at, behold; I examine, inspect; 413... |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | σκοπός | watcher, lookout; protector, guardian; spy, scout |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | σκέπτομαι | I look at, examine; I examine, consider, think |
| 6 | Proto-Hellenic | sképťomai | to look at |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | spéḱyeti | to be looking at, to keep looking at |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | speḱ- | to see, to look, to observe |