Unnumbered source etymology
Original entry ↗To open or close in the manner of an iris. · To cause (something) to shine with the colours of the rainbow; to make iridescent.
A plant of the genus Iris, common in the northern hemisphere, and generally having attractive blooms (See Iris (plant) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia ). · The contractile membrane perforated by the pupil, which adjusts to control the amount of light reaching the retina, and which forms the colored portion of the eye (See Iris (anatomy) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia ). · A diaphragm used to regulate the size of a hole, especially as a way of controlling the amount of light reaching a lens. · A rainbow, or other colourful refraction of light.
From Middle English iris, from Latin īris, from Ancient Greek ἶρις (îris, “rainbow”). Presuming an earlier form *ϝῖρις (*wîris), possibly from a derivative of Proto-Indo-European *w(e)ih₁-ro- (“a twist, thread, cord, wire”), from *weh₁y- (“to turn, twist, weave, plait”). If so, it would be cognate to English wire.
Relationships mentioned by the source
These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.
This page abbreviates 2 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.
Inspect preserved source fields
Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.
{
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{
"name": "etymon",
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": ":bor",
"3": "la:iris<id:iris la>",
"id": "iris en",
"tree": "1"
},
"expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"iris la\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"iris\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"iris\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"iris en\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"iris\" id=\"English:_iris_en\">"
},
{
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"3": "*weh₁y-"
},
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{
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"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "qsb-grc"
},
"expansion": ""
},
{
"name": "inh",
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "enm",
"3": "iris"
},
"expansion": "Middle English iris"
},
{
"name": "der",
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "la",
"3": "īris"
},
"expansion": "Latin īris"
},
{
"name": "der",
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"3": "ἶρις",
"t": "rainbow"
},
"expansion": "Ancient Greek ἶρις (îris, “rainbow”)"
},
{
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"2": "ine-pro",
"3": "*weh₁irós",
"4": "*w(e)ih₁-ro-",
"t": "a twist, thread, cord, wire"
},
"expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *w(e)ih₁-ro- (“a twist, thread, cord, wire”)"
},
{
"name": "m+",
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "wire"
},
"expansion": "English wire"
},
{
"name": "etymon",
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": ":bor",
"3": "la:iris<id:iris la>",
"id": "iris en",
"tree": "1"
},
"expansion": ""
}
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"links": [
[
"iris",
"iris#Middle_English"
],
[
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[
"ἶρις",
"ἶρις#Ancient_Greek"
],
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"*w(e)ih₁-ro-",
"Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/weh₁irós"
],
[
"*weh₁y-",
"Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/weh₁y-"
],
[
"wire",
"wire#English"
]
],
"references": [],
"descendants": [],
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{
"pos": "verb",
"glosses": [
"To open or close in the manner of an iris.",
"To cause (something) to shine with the colours of the rainbow; to make iridescent."
],
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"A plant of the genus Iris, common in the northern hemisphere, and generally having attractive blooms (See Iris (plant) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia ).",
"The contractile membrane perforated by the pupil, which adjusts to control the amount of light reaching the retina, and which forms the colored portion of the eye (See Iris (anatomy) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia ).",
"A diaphragm used to regulate the size of a hole, especially as a way of controlling the amount of light reaching a lens.",
"A rainbow, or other colourful refraction of light."
],
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