Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “prefas” come from?

prefas (Middle English) comes from Old French preface, from Medieval Latin prefatia, from Latin praefātiō, from Latin praefor, from Latin prae-, from Proto-Italic prai-, from Proto-Indo-European preh₂-, from Proto-Indo-European per- — passed , crossed.

Ancestry of “prefas”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchpreface—
2Medieval Latinprefatia—
3Latinpraefātiō—
4LatinpraeforI say, utter, mention beforehand or in advance; I...
5Latinprae-before; in front; in charge
6Proto-Italicprai-—
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpreh₂-before, in front
8Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
9Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “prefas”

  • preface
  • prefacer
  • prefaceless
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →