Etymology Explorer › Middle French

Where does “bille” come from?

bille (Middle French) comes from Old French bille, from Vulgar Latin billia, from Gaulish bilia, from Proto-Celtic belyom, from Proto-Indo-European bʰolh₃yom, from Proto-Indo-European bʰleh₃-, from Proto-Indo-European bʰel-, from Proto-Indo-European bʰōl-.

Ancestry of “bille”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchbillestick; baton; written decree, announcement
2Vulgar Latinbillia—
3Gaulishbiliatall tree
4Proto-Celticbelyomtree
5Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰolh₃yomleaf
6Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰleh₃-bloom, flower
7Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰel-to sound; to speak, roar, bark; shiny, white; to...
8Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰōl-—

Words derived from “bille”

  • billiard
  • billiards
  • billot
  • billar
  • biglia
  • bilia
  • biliardo
  • bille
  • habilleur
  • habillage
  • habilleuse
  • microbille
  • habillement
  • rhabiller
  • habiller
  • billot
  • billard
  • Billard
  • bilha
  • bilhar
  • billar
  • ビリヤード
  • biels
  • biel
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰōl- →