Etymology Explorer › Old French

Where does “fer” come from?

fer (Old French) comes from Latin ferus, from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰwer- — wild; wild animal.

fer (Old French): iron; sword; cruel; harsh

Definitions

  1. iron; sword; cruel; harsh

Ancestry of “fer”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinferuswild, savage; uncivilized, uncultivated; untamed,...
2Proto-Indo-Europeanǵʰwer-wild; wild animal

Words derived from “fer”

  • fierce
  • fiercely
  • defiant
  • defiantly
  • fierceness
  • fiancee
  • feral
  • fiancé
  • fiancée
  • semiferal
  • fiercesome
  • ferally
  • defiantness
  • undefiant
  • feralization
  • overfierce
  • fiercen
  • enfierced
  • effierced
  • feralize
  • fiance
  • ferrallero
  • ferralla
  • fiable
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰwer- →