Everyday LifeGreek → English
Anchor
/ˈæŋkər/noun
A heavy hooked device dropped from a vessel to hold it in place.
The Greek roots
ἄγκυρα
ánkyra
anchor, hook
Literally: “the bent thing, hook”
Follow a root:ἄγκυρα1 word
The story of the word
The Greek belongs to a family of words about bending: ἀγκών is the elbow and ἄγκος a hollow in the hills. Latin ancora went into Old English as ancor, so the word has been in English since before the Normans landed. The h is a Renaissance addition, inserted by scribes who believed the Latin was spelled anchora, and it has never been pronounced.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → Old English → English
In a sentence
They dropped anchor off the north side and swam ashore.
Her grandmother was the anchor of the whole household.