*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of ante-

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ent- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *h₂énts Proto-Indo-European *-i Proto-Indo-European *h₂énti Proto-Italic *anti Latin ante Classical Latin ante-lbor. English ante- Fr

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In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
prefix

Prior to in time. · In front of in space. · anterior.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ent- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *h₂énts Proto-Indo-European *-i Proto-Indo-European *h₂énti Proto-Italic *anti Latin ante Classical Latin ante-lbor. English ante- From Classical Latin ante-, use as prefix of ante (preposition); akin to Ancient Greek ἀντί (antí), Sanskrit अन्ति (anti), Gothic 𐌰𐌽𐌳- (and-) (only in compounds): compare answer, along, English ant-, ent- (in compounds). Doublet of anti-.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":lbor",
        "3": "la-cla:ante-",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *h₂ent-\nProto-Indo-European *-s\nProto-Indo-European *h₂énts\nProto-Indo-European *-i\nProto-Indo-European *h₂énti\nProto-Italic *anti\nLatin ante\nClassical Latin ante-lbor.\nEnglish ante-\n[Appendix:Glossary#learned_borrowing|Learned borrowing]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"before\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"in front\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"front\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"front\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*h₂ent-\", \"gloss\" : \"face, forehead; front\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" }, { \"id\" : \"amphikinetic\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*-s\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*h₂énts\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" }, { \"id\" : \"locative\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*-i\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*h₂énti\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Italic\", \"term\" : \"*anti\", \"lang\" : \"itc-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"ante\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Classical Latin\", \"term\" : \"ante-\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la-cla\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"lbor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"ante-\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"ante-\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la-cla",
        "3": "ante-"
      },
      "expansion": "Classical Latin ante-"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "grc",
        "2": "ἀντί"
      },
      "expansion": "Ancient Greek ἀντί (antí)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sa",
        "2": "अन्ति"
      },
      "expansion": "Sanskrit अन्ति (anti)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "got",
        "2": "𐌰𐌽𐌳-"
      },
      "expansion": "Gothic 𐌰𐌽𐌳- (and-)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ant-"
      },
      "expansion": "English ant-"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "anti-"
      },
      "expansion": "Doublet of anti-"
    },
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":lbor",
        "3": "la-cla:ante-",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *h₂ent-\nProto-Indo-European *-s\nProto-Indo-European *h₂énts\nProto-Indo-European *-i\nProto-Indo-European *h₂énti\nProto-Italic *anti\nLatin ante\nClassical Latin ante-lbor.\nEnglish ante-"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*h₂ent-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂ent-#Proto-Indo-European:_front"
    ],
    [
      "*-s",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-s#Proto-Indo-European:_amphikinetic"
    ],
    [
      "*h₂énts",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂énts#Proto-Indo-European:_front"
    ],
    [
      "*-i",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-i#Proto-Indo-European:_locative"
    ],
    [
      "*h₂énti",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂énti#Proto-Indo-European:_in_front"
    ],
    [
      "*anti",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Italic/anti#Proto-Italic:_before"
    ],
    [
      "ante",
      "ante#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "ante-",
      "ante-#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "ante-",
      "ante-#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "ante",
      "ante#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "ἀντί",
      "ἀντί#Ancient_Greek"
    ],
    [
      "अन्ति",
      "अन्ति#Sanskrit"
    ],
    [
      "𐌰𐌽𐌳-",
      "𐌰𐌽𐌳-#Gothic"
    ],
    [
      "answer",
      "answer#English"
    ],
    [
      "along",
      "along#English"
    ],
    [
      "ant-",
      "ant-#English"
    ],
    [
      "ent-",
      "ent-#German"
    ],
    [
      "anti-",
      "anti-#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "prefix",
      "glosses": [
        "Prior to in time.",
        "In front of in space.",
        "anterior."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic",
        "morpheme"
      ],
      "recordId": "526727e016a0216e09c658ac76aa6a740855aebe75ce6d33e3c185f94f3739fa",
      "rawRecordSha256": "e0a608eb8b37f0373a6d7ce092109964aa5e85291afcfef23d4a291d2ef5b0b4",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 181006
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for ante- →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-YW50ZS0