Etymograph

English

inter

Inter comes from Old French enterrer ‘to bury’, from Vulgar Latin *interrāre ‘to put in earth’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ters- ‘dry’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ters-‘dry’root as named
  2. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*interrāre‘to put in earth’reconstructed
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400enterrer‘to bury’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500enteren
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1975inter

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ters-‘dry’root as named
  2. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*interrāre‘to put in earth’reconstructed
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400enterrer‘to bury’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500enteren
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1975inter

Earliest quotation: 1975, Newly-Found Han Tomb Relics and Male Corpse: “The tomb was discovered on Fenghuangshan (Phoenix Hill) in…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *ters- ‘dry’

test, territory, toast, thirst, territorial, terrace, terrain, torrent, terrestrial, terra, terrier, torrid, fossa, fosse, terroir, terrine, 42 more

Today it means

verb To bury in a grave.

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

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ters- / inter

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