Where does “svelte” come from?
svelte (French) comes from Italian svelto, from Italian svellere, from Vulgar Latin exvellere, from Latin vellere, from Latin vello, from Proto-Italic welnō, from Proto-Indo-European welh₃- — to hit, to strike.
svelte (French): thin; slender
Definitions
- thin; slender
Ancestry of “svelte”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italian | svelto | quick; brisk; quick-witted |
| 2 | Italian | svellere | to eradicate, to root |
| 3 | Vulgar Latin | exvellere | — |
| 4 | Latin | vellere | ablative singular of vellus; second-person... |
| 5 | Latin | vello | I pluck out; I depilate; I pull or tear down; I... |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | welnō | to pull, tear |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | welh₃- | to hit, to strike |