Etymology Explorer › Middle French

Where does “arable” come from?

arable (Middle French) comes from Old French arable, from Vulgar Latin acerābulus, from Latin ācer, from Latin saccharum, from Ancient Greek σάκχαρ, from Sanskrit शर्करा, from Proto-Indo-Aryan śárkaraH, from Proto-Indo-Iranian ćárkaraH — gravel, boulder; boulder; gravel.

Ancestry of “arable”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frencharablearable
2Vulgar Latinacerābulus—
3Latinācer—
4Latinsaccharumsugar
5Ancient Greekσάκχαρsugar; sugar cane
6Sanskritशर्कराgravel, grit, pebbles, shingle, gravelly mould or...
7Proto-Indo-AryanśárkaraH—
8Proto-Indo-IranianćárkaraH—
9Proto-Indo-Europeanḱorkeh₂gravel, boulder; boulder; gravel
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱorkeh₂ →