English
quatrain
Quatrain comes from French quatre ‘four’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *kʷetwóres.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷetwóres‘four’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquattuor‘four’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400quatre‘four’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentsame form‘four’
- French, derivedc. 1600–presentquatrain
- Englishearliest quotation 1894same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷetwóres‘four’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquattuor‘four’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400quatre‘four’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentsame form‘four’
- French, derivedc. 1600–presentquatrain
- Englishearliest quotation 1894same form
Earliest quotation: 1894, The Sketch, London: “The menu card was designed by Mr. Arthur Hacker,…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kʷetwóres ‘four’
fourth, kern, farthing, carillon, quire, ferd, tetrad, 19 more
through Latin quattuor ‘four’
square, squad, quarry, cadre, quadruple, quadrant, quadratic, cuatro, quadra, 27 more
through French quatre ‘four’
Today it means
noun A poem in four lines.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *kʷetwóres / quatrain