Etymology Explorer › Middle French

Where does “piece” come from?

piece (Middle French) comes from Old French piece, from Vulgar Latin pettia, from Latin pettia, from Gaulish pettyā, from Proto-Celtic kʷezdis — piece, portion.

piece (Middle French): piece, bit, part; moment

Definitions

  1. piece, bit, part; moment

Ancestry of “piece”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchpiecepiece, bit, part; circa 1170, Chrétien de Troyes
2Vulgar Latinpettiapiece, portion
3Latinpettiapiece, portion
4Gaulishpettyā—
5Proto-Celtickʷezdispiece, portion

Words derived from “piece”

  • dépeceur
  • rapiécer
  • rapiéçage
  • piécette
  • dépecer
  • redépecer
  • pièce
  • pièce justificative
  • dépeçage
  • schackpjäs
  • pjäs
  • piesă
  • פּיעסע
Every word from Proto-Celtic kʷezdis →