Where does “traitour” come from?
traitour (Middle English) comes from Old French traitor, from Latin traditor, from Portuguese trado, from Old Portuguese traado, from Late Latin taratrum, from Ancient Greek τέρετρον, from Ancient Greek -τρον, from Proto-Hellenic -tron — Derives agent nouns from verbs, denoting someone...
Ancestry of “traitour”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old French | traitor | traitor |
| 2 | Latin | traditor | betrayer, traitor; teacher |
| 3 | Portuguese | trado | auger |
| 4 | Old Portuguese | traado | — |
| 5 | Late Latin | taratrum | auger |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | τέρετρον | borer, gimlet |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | -τρον | Forms instrument nouns |
| 8 | Proto-Hellenic | -tron | Forms instrument nouns from verb stems |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -trom | Forms nouns denoting a tool or instrument |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -tḗr | Derives agent nouns from verbs, denoting someone... |
Words derived from “traitour”