Etymology Explorer › Old French

Where does “herce” come from?

herce (Old French) comes from Latin herpicem, from Latin hirpex, from Latin hirpus, from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰers- — stiff; surprised.

Ancestry of “herce”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinherpicem—
2Latinhirpexharrow
3Latinhirpuswolf
4Proto-Indo-Europeanǵʰers-stiff; surprised

Words derived from “herce”

  • hers
  • hearse
  • hearselike
  • hearsecloth
  • hearseless
  • enhearse
  • herce
  • herse
  • hers
  • hèrse
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰers- →