Etymograph

English

base

Base comes from Middle English base ‘a foundation or base’, from Ancient Greek βᾰ́σῐς ‘stepping, step’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷem-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷem-‘to come’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷémtis‘step’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*gʷə́tis‘step’reconstructed
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβᾰ́σῐςbắsĭs‘stepping’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEbasis‘a pedestal’
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400base
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500base‘a foundation or base’
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1613base

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷem-‘to come’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷémtis‘step’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*gʷə́tis‘step’reconstructed
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβᾰ́σῐςbắsĭs‘stepping’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEbasis‘a pedestal’
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400base
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500base‘a foundation or base’
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1613base

Earliest quotation: 1613, John Marston: “bakers in their linen bases”.

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- ‘to come, to step’

come, coming, event, revenue, convention, adventure, avenue, venue, diabetes, inventory, cum, convenience, advent, intervene, inventor, invent, souvenir, provenance, pug, convene, contravention, revenant, circumvention, contravene, quim, 53 more

through Proto-Hellenic *gʷə́tis ‘step’

bassoon, basso, basset, 9 more

through Latin basis ‘a pedestal, foot, base’

basis, basilar, 1 more

through Middle English base ‘a foundation or base’

basic, bass

Another origin of base

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷem-‘step’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷémtis‘step, act of walking’uncertain
  3. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*gʷə́tis‘step’uncertain
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβάσις‘stepping, step’uncertain
  5. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEbassus‘low’
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400bas‘low’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500baseuncertain
  8. Englishtodaybase

Today it means

noun Something from which other things extend; a foundation.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- / base

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