Everyday LifeGreek → English
Cider
/ˈsaɪdər/noun
Fermented apple juice, alcoholic in Britain and usually not in America.
The Greek roots
σίκερα
síkera
strong fermented drink
Literally: “intoxicating drink”
Follow a root:σίκερα1 word
The story of the word
The Hebrew shēkhār, strong drink, had no Greek equivalent that was not wine, so the translators of the Septuagint simply carried the word across as σίκερα. Latin took sicera from them, Old French turned it into sidre, and English narrowed the meaning to apples. The Greek stage is real transmission rather than Greek ownership: the word was a Semitic guest passing through.
- How it travelled
- Hebrew → Ancient Greek → Late Latin → Old French → English
- First recorded
- 14th century
Same family
cyder
In a sentence
The farm presses its own cider in October and sells it by the gallon.
Ask for cider in Boston and you will get something a child can drink.