Where does “entretenir” come from?

entretenir (Old French) comes from Old French tenir, from Latin teneō, from Proto-Italic tenēō, from Proto-Indo-European ten- — to stretch, to extend.

entretenir (Old French): to support one another

Definitions

  1. to support one another

Ancestry of “entretenir”, step by step

entretenir traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old French tenir

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchtenirto possess; to have; to hold
2Latinteneōto hold, have; to grasp
3Proto-Italictenēōto hold
4Proto-Indo-Europeanten-to stretch, to extend

via Old French entre

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchentreamong; amongst
2Latininterbetween, among; during, while
3Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁entérbetween
4Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁enin; in, inside

Words derived from “entretenir

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ten-Every word from Proto-Italic tenēōEvery word from Latin teneō