Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “selc” come from?

selc (Middle English) comes from Old English seolc, from Latin sēricum, from English serigraph, from Latin sericum, from Latin sericus, from Latin -icus, from Ancient Greek -ικός, from Ancient Greek -κός — -y, -ic.

Ancestry of “selc”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishseolcsilk
2Latinsēricum—
3Englishserigrapha silkscreen print made by serigraphy; an...
4LatinsericumChinese goods, but especially silk
5LatinsericusOf or pertaining to the Seres or the Chinese;...
6Latin-icusbelonging to; derived from; of or pertaining to;...
7Ancient Greek-ικόςof or pertaining to, in the manner of; -ic
8Ancient Greek-κόςforms adjectives with the sense of 'of or...
9Proto-Indo-European-ḱos-y, -ic

Words derived from “selc”

  • silk
  • silkscreen
  • cornsilk
  • silkmoth
  • silklike
  • silkweed
  • silkwoman
  • silkman
  • silkworks
  • silkgrass
  • silktail
  • silkstone
  • silkette
  • silkgrowing
  • silkless
  • silkware
  • silkness
  • silkwear
  • desilk
  • nonsilk
  • silkgrower
  • silkatra
  • silko
  • silik
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -ḱos →