Etymograph

English

fore-

Fore- comes from Proto-West Germanic *forē- ‘before, in front of, fore-, pre-’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *per-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-1‘before, formerly’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*fura-1‘before, in front of, for’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*forē-1‘before, in front of, fore-, pre-’reconstructed
  4. Englishtodayfore-1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English fore-

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-Wiktionary, English fore-‘before, formerly’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*fura-Wiktionary, English fore-‘before, in front of, for’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*forē-Wiktionary, English fore-‘before, in front of, fore-, pre-’reconstructed
  4. Englishtodayfore-Wiktionary, English fore-

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘before, formerly’

first, far, per, further, support, price, private, before, practice, fear, primary, press, prime, report, opportunity, prize, appreciate, prior, pre, practical, transport, sport, port, pregnant, praise, privilege, parade, par, precious, interpretation, afford, ferry, pirate, pardon, ford, forth, primitive, prix, fare, porch, 157 more

Today it means

prefix Before: the root is happening earlier in time.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “fore-”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *per- / fore-

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