Where does “reptile” come from?
reptile (Middle French) comes from Old French reptile, from Late Latin reptile, from Latin reptilis, from Latin rēpō, from Proto-Italic rēpō, from Proto-Indo-European h₁reh₁p- — to creep.
Ancestry of “reptile”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old French | reptile | — |
| 2 | Late Latin | reptile | neuter nominative singular of rēptilis; neuter... |
| 3 | Latin | reptilis | creeping, crawling |
| 4 | Latin | rēpō | — |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | rēpō | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁reh₁p- | to creep |