Etymology of the English word fossil
the English word
fossilderived from the French word
fossilederived from the Latin word
fossilis (dug up, out; fossil-)
derived from the Latin word
fossusderived from the Latin word
fodere (to dig; dig, dig out, up)
derived from the Proto-Indo-European root
*bhedh- (to dig, to pierce)
Date
The earliest known usage of fossil in English dates from the 17th century.
Derivations in English
fossilize,
macrofossil,
microfossil,
nannofossil,
fossiliferousCognates
Danish
fossil, Dutch
fossiel, French
fossile, German
Fossil, Norwegian
fossil, Swedish
fossilUsage
Word found in Modern English
