picture etymology

English word picture comes from Proto-Indo-European *peyḱ- (spot, color), and later Latin pingo (I paint) and pictura (painting, picture)

Detailed word origin of picture

Dictionary entryLanguageDefinition
*peyḱ- Proto-Indo-European (ine-pro)
pingo Latin (lat) I decorate or embellish. I paint, tint or colour. I portray.
pictura Latin (lat) Painting, the art of painting. Picture (image).
picture Old French (fro)
pycture Middle English (enm)
picture English (eng) (in the plural, informal) ("the pictures") Cinema (as a form of entertainment).. (informal) A motion picture.. A figure; a model.. A painting.. A paragon, a perfect example or specimen (of a category).. A photograph.. A representation of anything (as a person, a landscape, a building) upon canvas, paper, or other surface, by drawing, painting, printing, photography, etc.. An attractive [...]

Words with the same origin as picture

Descendants of *peyḱ-
fad fade feud file filing foe paint painter painting pic pint pinto