Where does “structure” come from?

structure (Middle French) comes from Latin structūra, from Latin struō, from Proto-Italic strowō, from Proto-Indo-European strew-, from Proto-Indo-European sterh₃-, from Proto-Indo-European ster- — sterile, infertile.

Ancestry of “structure”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinstructūrathe practice or process of building, construction
2Latinstruōto place one thing on top of another, to pile up, join together
3Proto-Italicstrowōpile up; construct, build
4Proto-Indo-Europeanstrew-to spread, to strew
5Proto-Indo-Europeansterh₃-to spread, extend, stretch out
6Proto-Indo-Europeanster-sterile, infertile

Words derived from “structure

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ster-