Where does “pinsel” come from?
pinsel (Middle High German) comes from Old French pincel, from Latin pēnicellus, from Latin pēnicillum, from Latin -illus, from Latin -lus, from Proto-Italic -elos, from Proto-Indo-European -e-lós, from Proto-Indo-European -lós — Forms agent nouns from verbal roots.
Ancestry of “pinsel”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old French | pincel | paintbrush |
| 2 | Latin | pēnicellus | — |
| 3 | Latin | pēnicillum | A painter's brush |
| 4 | Latin | -illus | Used to form adjectives from nouns |
| 5 | Latin | -lus | Alternative form of -ulus; diminutive suffix |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | -elos | Forms desubstantival and deadjectival diminutive nouns |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -e-lós | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -lós | Forms agent nouns from verbal roots |