Drag to pan · scroll to zoom
Drag to rotate
Tracing “”…
Where does the word "terrestrial" come from? It comes from Latin terrestris, and was adopted directly into English (1400s).
Read the full story
Where does the word "terrestrial" come from? It comes from Latin terrestris, and was adopted directly into English (1400s).
Terrestrial’s story begins in Latin: terrestris meant “relating to the earth.” Relating to the earth, from terra (earth). It reached English by 1400s as terrestrial. Settled as the English word for anything relating to the earth. Today, terrestrial means relating to the earth or land, as opposed to sea, air, or space.
- Stage 1 · Latin · ancient terrestris "relating to the earth", relating to the earth, from terra (earth).
- Stage 2 · English · 1400s terrestrial "relating to the earth or dry land", settled as the English word for anything relating to the earth.