French word boule comes from Proto-Indo-European *bʰl̥-, Proto-Indo-European *bʰln-, and later Proto-Germanic *bullǭ (Round object, ball. Round vessel, bowl.)
| Dictionary entry | Language | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| *bʰl̥- | Proto-Indo-European (ine-pro) | |
| *bʰln- | Proto-Indo-European (ine-pro) | |
| *bullǭ | Proto-Germanic (gem-pro) | Round object, ball. Round vessel, bowl. |
| *bolla | Frankish (frk) | Ball. Bowl. Bun. |
| bole | Old French (fro) | |
| *bolla | Vulgar Latin (la-vul) | |
| bolle | Old French (fro) | |
| boule | Middle French (frm) | |
| boule | French (fra) |