leptospirosis
Meaninga thin coil sickness
Common meaning: a bacterial disease from thin spiral germs
- leptthin, fineLiddell & Scott, Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon (1889), p. 469 · scan
- spirto breatheLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 1743 · scan
- osisGreek noun ending: a state or process
‘thin, fine’ + ‘to breathe’ → leptospirosis
Journey through time
Hybrid: Greek + Latin Its parts come from different languages; our sources do not record where they were first put together.
Neither part’s path through time is traced in our sources yet; each root is shown from its dictionary entry.
- lept — Greek λεπτός “thin, fine” (dictionary form; path not traced)
- spir — Latin spīrō, spīrāvī “to breathe” (dictionary form; path not traced)
Sources & notes
Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: not available. Respelling: generated.
- US IPA: not available. Respelling: generated.
Origin: Built on Greek λεπτός ‘thin, fine’ + Latin spīrō ‘to breathe’.
Roots
- spīrō, spīrāvī Latin “to breathe”
- λεπτός Greek “thin, fine”
Related words
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