Etymology Explorer › French

Where does “tournesol” come from?

tournesol (French) comes from Italian tornasole, from Italian tornare, from Latin tornō, from Latin tornus, from Ancient Greek τόρνος, from Proto-Indo-European torh₂no-, from Proto-Indo-European terh₁- — to rub, turn; to drill, pierce.

tournesol (French): sunflower; heliotrope; litmus

Definitions

  1. sunflower; heliotrope; litmus

Ancestry of “tournesol”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Italiantornasole—
2Italiantornareto return, come back
3Latintornō—
4LatintornusA turner's wheel, lathe; A potter's wheel
5Ancient GreekτόρνοςA tool similar to a pair of compasses used to...
6Proto-Indo-Europeantorh₂no-—
7Proto-Indo-Europeanterh₁-to rub, turn; to drill, pierce

Words derived from “tournesol”

  • turnsole
Every word from Proto-Indo-European terh₁- →