Where does “nonpareil” come from?
nonpareil (Middle French) comes from Middle French pareil, from Latin pariculus, from Latin pār, from Proto-Indo-European perH-, from Proto-Indo-European per-, from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós — passed , crossed.
nonpareil (Middle French): unparallelled; unprecedented
Definitions
- unparallelled; unprecedented
Ancestry of “nonpareil”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle French | pareil | — |
| 2 | Latin | pariculus | — |
| 3 | Latin | pār | — |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | perH- | to fly; fore, first; exchange |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |
Words derived from “nonpareil”