Where does “contramestre” come from?

contramestre (Portuguese) comes from Portuguese mestre, from Old Portuguese meestre, from Old Occitan maestre, from Latin magister, from Proto-Italic magisteros, from Proto-Indo-European méǵh₂isteros, from Proto-Indo-European méǵh₂s — big, great.

contramestre (Portuguese): overseer; supervisor; petty officer who controls...

Definitions

  1. overseer; supervisor; petty officer who controls...

Ancestry of “contramestre”, step by step

contramestre traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Portuguese mestre

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Portuguesemestremaster
2Old Portuguesemeestremaster
3Old Occitanmaestremaster; Master; magister
4Latinmagisterteacher; master; a title of the Middle Ages,...
5Proto-Italicmagisterosbigger, greater
6Proto-Indo-Europeanméǵh₂isteros
7Proto-Indo-Europeanméǵh₂sbig, great

via Catalan mestre

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Catalanmestremaster; teacher

via Galician mestre

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Galicianmestremaster
Every word from Proto-Indo-European méǵh₂sEvery word from Proto-Indo-European méǵh₂isterosEvery word from Proto-Italic magisteros