Etymology Explorer › Old English

Where does “fore” come from?

fore (Old English) comes from Proto-Germanic furai, from Proto-Indo-European preh₂-, from Proto-Indo-European per-, from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós — passed , crossed.

fore (Old English): before; forepart, front

Definitions

  1. before; forepart, front

Ancestry of “fore”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-Germanicfuraibefore, in front of; before, in front
2Proto-Indo-Europeanpreh₂-before, in front
3Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
4Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “fore”

  • form
  • former
  • forming
  • formerly
  • foremost
  • waveform
  • formless
  • forme
  • isoform
  • multiform
  • microform
  • landform
  • beamforming
  • formlessness
  • formwork
  • preform
  • beamformer
  • subform
  • thermoforming
  • planform
  • headforemost
  • formability
  • formfitting
  • electroforming
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →