Etymology Explorer › Old French

Where does “mote” come from?

mote (Old French) comes from Medieval Latin mota, from Frankish *mot, from Proto-Germanic *motta, from Proto-Germanic mutô, from Proto-Indo-European (s)mut- — dark, dirty.

mote (Old French): mound, embankment

Definitions

  1. mound, embankment

Ancestry of “mote”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Medieval Latinmotaa mound, hill; nominative feminine singular of...
2Frankish*mot—
3Proto-Germanic*motta—
4Proto-Germanicmutô—
5Proto-Indo-European(s)mut-dark, dirty

Words derived from “mote”

  • moat
  • moated
  • motte
  • mott
  • moatlike
  • motte
  • mote
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)mut- →