Etymology Explorer › Spanish

Where does “tornasol” come from?

tornasol (Spanish) comes from English turnsole, from French tournesol, from Italian tornasole, from Italian tornare, from Latin tornō, from Latin tornus, from Ancient Greek τόρνος, from Proto-Indo-European torh₂no- — to rub, turn; to drill, pierce.

tornasol (Spanish): litmus; iridescence; sunflower

Definitions

  1. litmus; iridescence; sunflower

Ancestry of “tornasol”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishturnsoleThe heliotrope; so named because its flowers are...
2Frenchtournesolsunflower; heliotrope; litmus
3Italiantornasole—
4Italiantornareto return, come back
5Latintornō—
6LatintornusA turner's wheel, lathe; A potter's wheel
7Ancient GreekτόρνοςA tool similar to a pair of compasses used to...
8Proto-Indo-Europeantorh₂no-—
9Proto-Indo-Europeanterh₁-to rub, turn; to drill, pierce
Every word from Proto-Indo-European terh₁- →