femme

French

noun
Definitions
  • woman
  • wife
  • (LGBT) contrast m

Etymology

Inherited from Middle French femme inherited from Old French fame (celebrity, renown) inherited from Latin fēmina (woman, female, wife) inherited from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-m̥h₁n-éh₂, *dʰeh₁m̥h₁néh₂ (nursing, breastfeeding).

Origin

Proto-Indo-European

*dʰeh₁-m̥h₁n-éh₂, *dʰeh₁m̥h₁néh₂

Gloss

nursing, breastfeeding

Timeline

Distribution of cognates by language

Geogrpahic distribution of cognates

Cognates and derived terms