kʷetwer-

Four.

Derivatives include four, squad, quarantine, and farthing.

I. O-grade form *kʷetwor-.

1.

a. four, from Old English fēower, four;

b. forty, from Old English fēowertig, forty;

c. fourteen; fortnight, from Old English fēowertēne, fourteen (-tēne, ten; see dekm̥). a-c all from Germanic *fe(d)wor-, probably from *kʷetwor-.

2. quatrain; cater-cornered, quattrocento, from Latin quattuor, four.

3. czardas, from Old Iranian cathwārō, four.

II. Multiplicatives *kʷeturs, *kʷetrus, and combining forms *kʷetur-, *kʷetru-.

1. cahier, carillon, carnet, casern, quaternary, quaternion, quire¹, from Latin quater, four times.

2. cadre, quadrate, quadrille¹, quarrel², quarry²; escadrille, squad, square, trocar, from Latin quadrum, square.

3. quadri-, from Latin quadri-, four.

4. quadrant, from Latin quadrāns, a fourth part.

5. quarantine, from Latin quadrāgintā, forty (-gintā, ten times; see dekm̥).

6. quadricentenary, from Latin quadri(n)gentī, four hundred.

7. Variant form *kʷet(w)r̥-.

a. tetra-, from Greek tetra-, four;

b. tessera; diatessaron, from Greek tessares, tettares, four;

c. tetrad, from Greek tetras, group of four;

d. zero-grade form *kʷt(w)r̥-. trapezium, from Greek tra-, four.

III. Ordinal adjective *kʷetur-to-.

1.

a. fourth, from Old English fēortha, fēowertha, fourth;

b. firkin, from Middle Dutch veerde, fourth;

c. farthing, from Old English fēorthing, fēorthung, fourth part of a penny;

d. filler², from Old High German fiordo, fourth. a-d all from Germanic *fe(d)worthōn-.

2. quadrille², quadroon, quart, quartan, quarter, quarto, from Latin quārtus, fourth, quarter.

 

[Pokorny kᵘ̯etu̯er- 642.]

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