Where does “veteran” come from?

veteran (Romanian) comes from French vétéran, from Latin veterānus, from Latin vetus, from Latin -tus, from Proto-Italic -tus, from Proto-Indo-European -tus — Derives action nouns from verb roots.

veteran (Romanian): veteran (person who has served in the armed forces, or figuratively a person with a long experience of a particular activity; also used in the context of Ancient Rome, referring to a freed soldier granted citizenship and privileges for his service)

Definitions

  1. veteran (person who has served in the armed forces, or figuratively a person with a long experience of a particular activity; also used in the context of Ancient Rome, referring to a freed soldier granted citizenship and privileges for his service)

Ancestry of “veteran”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchvétéranveteran
2Latinveterānusold, veteran
3Latinvetusold, aged, elderly, ancient; long-standing;...
4Latin-tusForms the past participle of verbs; Forms...
5Proto-Italic-tus—
6Proto-Indo-European-tusDerives action nouns from verb roots
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tus →Every word from Latin -tus →Every word from Latin vetus →