Where does “Termite” come from?

Termite (German) comes from Late Latin termes, from Latin tarmes, from Proto-Indo-European terh₁- — to rub, turn; to drill, pierce.

Termite (German): termite white-bodied, wood-consuming insect

Definitions

  1. termite white-bodied, wood-consuming insect

Ancestry of “Termite”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Late Latintermesa branch bough of a tree, one severed thence;...
2Latintarmesa worm that eats wood; a woodworm
3Proto-Indo-Europeanterh₁-to rub, turn; to drill, pierce
Every word from Proto-Indo-European terh₁- →