Etymology Explorer › Old French

Where does “colour” come from?

colour (Old French) comes from Latin color, from Ancient Greek μέτρον, from Ancient Greek -τρον, from Proto-Hellenic -tron, from Proto-Indo-European -trom, from Proto-Indo-European -tḗr — Derives agent nouns from verbs, denoting someone...

colour (Old French): Alternative form of color

Definitions

  1. Alternative form of color

Ancestry of “colour”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latincolorcolour, shade; color; pigment; complexion
2Ancient Greekμέτρονsomething used to measure: measure, rule, weight;...
3Ancient Greek-τρονForms instrument nouns
4Proto-Hellenic-tronForms instrument nouns from verb stems
5Proto-Indo-European-tromForms nouns denoting a tool or instrument
6Proto-Indo-European-tḗrDerives agent nouns from verbs, denoting someone...

Words derived from “colour”

  • color
  • colors
  • colorful
  • coloring
  • colorless
  • watercolor
  • tricolor
  • colorfully
  • colorist
  • colorable
  • colorimeter
  • colorimetry
  • Tricolor
  • colorism
  • colorization
  • coloristic
  • decolorization
  • unicolor
  • decolorize
  • watercolorist
  • colorize
  • recolor
  • colorfulness
  • colorlessness
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tḗr →