Where does “main” come from?

main (Middle French) comes from Old French main, from Latin manus, from Proto-Italic manus, from Proto-Indo-European man- — human being; man; hand.

main (Middle French): hand

Definitions

  1. hand

Ancestry of “main”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchmainhand
2Latinmanushand; bravery, valor; violence, fighting
3Proto-Italicmanushand
4Proto-Indo-Europeanman-human being; man; hand

Words derived from “main”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European man- →