Etymograph

English

pearless

Pearless comes from Old English pere ‘pear’, and goes back to Vulgar Latin pirum.

  1. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CEpirum1as pira‘a pear (fruit)’
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*peru1‘pear’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150pere1‘pear’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500pere1
  5. English1500–presentpear1
  6. Englishtodaypearless1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English pearless

Lineage

  1. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CEpirumWiktionary, English pearlessas pira‘a pear (fruit)’
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*peruWiktionary, English pearless‘pear’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150pereWiktionary, English pearless‘pear’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500pereWiktionary, English pearless
  5. English1500–presentpearWiktionary, English pearless
  6. EnglishtodaypearlessWiktionary, English pearless

A compound of pear + -less

Latin pirum ‘a pear (fruit)’

Vulgar Latin pira

Proto-West Germanic *peru

Old English pere

Middle English pere

English pear

Linked words

through Vulgar Latin pirum ‘a pear (fruit)’

perry, 7 more

through Middle English pere

pier, 3 more

through English pear

peary, 1 more

Today it means

adj Without pears.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “pearless”. 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 / Vulgar Latin pirum / pearless

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