Where does “muscle” come from?
muscle (Middle English) comes from Old English muscle, from Proto-Germanic *muskulā, from Latin muscula, from Latin mūsculus, from Ancient Greek μῦς, from Proto-Hellenic *mū́s, from Proto-Indo-Iranian múHs, from Proto-Indo-European múh₂s — mouse.
Ancestry of “muscle”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old English | muscle | — |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | *muskulā | — |
| 3 | Latin | muscula | Diminutive of musca |
| 4 | Latin | mūsculus | — |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | μῦς | mouse; A type of mussel; A type of whale |
| 6 | Proto-Hellenic | *mū́s | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-Iranian | múHs | mouse |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | múh₂s | mouse |
Words derived from “muscle”