Where does “letter” come from?
letter (Middle English) comes from Old French letre, from Latin littera, from Latin lītera, from Old Latin leitera, from Proto-Indo-European h₂leyH-, from Proto-Indo-European leyh₂- — to die, disapear; to avoid, elude, decline,...
Ancestry of “letter”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old French | letre | letter |
| 2 | Latin | littera | a letter of the alphabet; handwriting; letter,... |
| 3 | Latin | lītera | — |
| 4 | Old Latin | leitera | — |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂leyH- | to smear |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | leyh₂- | to die, disapear; to avoid, elude, decline,... |
Words derived from “letter”