Where does “point” come from?

point (French) comes from Middle French poinct, from Old French point, from Latin pūnctum, from Latin punctus, from Latin -tus, from Proto-Italic -tus, from Proto-Indo-European -tus — Derives action nouns from verb roots.

point (French): point; full stop, period; stitch pattern

Definitions

  1. point; full stop, period; stitch pattern

Ancestry of “point”, step by step

point traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Middle French poinct

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Frenchpoinctpoint; not
2Old Frenchpointa sting; a prick; moment; time; dot
3Latinpūnctumpoint
4Latinpunctuspricked, punctured, pierced, having been pricked;...
5Latin-tusForms the past participle of verbs; Forms...
6Proto-Italic-tus
7Proto-Indo-European-tusDerives action nouns from verb roots

via French poindre

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchpoindreto prick, sting
2Old Frenchpoindreto puncture; to pierce; to sting; to prick;...
3Latinpungeresecond-person singular future passive indicative...

via Latin pungit

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinpungitthird-person singular present active indicative...

Words derived from “point

Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tus