Etymograph

English

trans-

Trans- comes from Proto-Italic *trāns ‘across, beyond’, from Proto-Indo-European *térh₂t ‘to get through, cross over’, and ultimately from *terh₂-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*terh₂-1‘to cross over, pass through, overcome’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*térh₂t1‘to get through, cross over’reconstructedderived within Proto-Indo-European
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tr̥h₂ónts1reconstructedderived within Proto-Indo-European
  4. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tr̥h₂n̥ts1reconstructedderived within Proto-Indo-European
  5. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trāns1‘across, beyond’reconstructed
  6. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trāns-1reconstructedderived within Proto-Italic
  7. Englishtodaytrans-2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin trans-
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English trans-

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*terh₂-Wiktionary, Latin trans-‘to cross over, pass through, overcome’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*térh₂tWiktionary, Latin trans-‘to get through, cross over’reconstructedderived within Proto-Indo-European
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tr̥h₂óntsWiktionary, Latin trans-reconstructedderived within Proto-Indo-European
  4. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tr̥h₂n̥tsWiktionary, Latin trans-reconstructedderived within Proto-Indo-European
  5. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trānsWiktionary, Latin trans-‘across, beyond’reconstructed
  6. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trāns-Wiktionary, Latin trans-reconstructedderived within Proto-Italic
  7. Englishtodaytrans-Wiktionary, English trans-

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *terh₂- ‘to cross over, pass through, overcome’

through, enter, thorough, avatar, tram, tardy, torus, sarai, 21 more

through Proto-Italic *trāns ‘across, beyond’

tranquillity, 2 more

Today it means

prefix Extending across, through, or over.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “trans-”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin trans-. 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 *terh₂- / trans-

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