Etymograph

English

montre

Montre comes from French montre ‘show, show case, organ case’, from Latin mōnstrum ‘a divine omen indicating misfortune, an evil…’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *men- ‘to think, mind’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*men-1‘to think, mind’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*monéyeti1‘to cause to think, make think’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*man-eje-1reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*moneō1‘to remind, warn’reconstructed
  5. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*monestrom1reconstructed
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmōnstrum1‘a divine omen indicating misfortune, an evil omen, portent’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmonstro2as mōnstrāre‘to show, point out, indicate, demonstrate’
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400monstrer2‘to show’
  9. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600monstrer2‘to show’
  10. Frenchc. 1600–presentmontrer3‘show’
  11. Frenchc. 1600–presentmontre4‘show, show case, organ case’
  12. Englishtodaymontre4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin monstro
  2. 2 Wiktionary, French montrer
  3. 3 Wiktionary, French montre
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English montre

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*men-Wiktionary, Latin monstro‘to think, mind’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*monéyetiWiktionary, Latin monstro‘to cause to think, make think’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*man-eje-Wiktionary, Latin monstroreconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*moneōWiktionary, Latin monstro‘to remind, warn’reconstructed
  5. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*monestromWiktionary, Latin monstroreconstructed
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmōnstrumWiktionary, Latin monstro‘a divine omen indicating misfortune, an evil omen, portent’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmonstroWiktionary, French montreras mōnstrāre‘to show, point out, indicate, demonstrate’
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400monstrerWiktionary, French montrer‘to show’
  9. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600monstrerWiktionary, French montrer‘to show’
  10. Frenchc. 1600–presentmontrerWiktionary, French montre‘show’
  11. Frenchc. 1600–presentmontreWiktionary, English montre‘show, show case, organ case’
  12. EnglishtodaymontreWiktionary, English montre

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *men- ‘to think, mind’

music, mind, money, museum, comment, amount, mental, remain, mouth, auto, min, permanent, mountain, mention, mount, maya, monetary, mentor, amnesty, mint, muse, dementia, menace, ming, prominence, mas, mandarin, imminent, mania, eminent, amnesia, mosaic, monk, manic, monastery, eminence, summons, mantra, mun, monte, 110 more

through Proto-Indo-European *monéyeti ‘to cause to think, make think’

summon, 12 more

through Proto-Italic *man-eje-

monumental, 12 more

through Proto-Italic *moneō ‘to remind, warn’

monitor, monument, admonition, minter, admonish, 13 more

through Latin mōnstrum ‘a divine omen indicating misfortune, an evil…’

monster, monstrous, monstrosity, 6 more

through Latin monstro ‘to show, point out, indicate, demonstrate’

demonstration, muster, demonstrative, 5 more

Today it means

noun An organ stop, usually the open diapason, having its pipes on display as part of the organ case, or otherwise specially mounted.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “montre”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin monstro, French montrer, French montre. 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 *men- / montre

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