English
carnivorous
Carnivorous comes from Latin carnivorus ‘flesh-eating’, from Proto-Italic *karō ‘meat’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- ‘to cut off, sever’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)ker-‘to cut off, sever’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*karō‘meat’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcarō‘meat, flesh’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcarnivorus‘flesh-eating’
- Englishtodaycarnivorous
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)ker-‘to cut off, sever’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*karō‘meat’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcarō‘meat, flesh’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcarnivorus‘flesh-eating’
- Englishtodaycarnivorous
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- ‘to cut off, sever’
short, across, share, screen, cross, cancer, score, shirt, circle, circuit, crucial, curve, circulation, skirt, circus, curb, scrutiny, shrine, scare, crest, cancellation, scar, circa, shred, scorpion, shear, raffle, circulate, incarceration, shrewd, corona, crux, cirque, riddance, carcinoma, crepe, corolla, shard, scorn, ruck, 114 more
through Latin carō ‘meat, flesh’
card, incarnation, carnage, incarnate, carnal, carrion, carnation, 13 more
Today it means
adj Of, or relating to carnivores, or the taxonomic order Carnivora.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- / carnivorous