English

system

/ˈsɪstəm/
A group or set of related things that operate together as a complex whole.

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    Origin

    Partly borrowed from Middle French sisteme, systeme, partly directly from its etymon Late Latin systēma (“harmony; musical scale; set of celestial objects; set of troops; system”), from Ancient Greek σύστημα (sústēma, “musical scale; organized body; whole made of several parts or members”), from σῠνίστημῐ (sŭnístēmĭ, “to combine, organize”) + -μᾰ (-mă, resultative suffix). σῠνίστημῐ is from σῠν- (sŭn-, “with, together”) + ἵστημι (hístēmi, “to stand”), from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- (“to stand (up)”).

    Cognate with Dutch systeem, modern French système, German System, Italian sistema, Portuguese sistema, Spanish sistema. Doublet of systema.

    From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

    Lineage

    • borrowedMiddle Frenchsysteme
      • inheritedLate Latinsystēma
        • borrowedAncient Greekσύστημα “a composite; system”
    • rootProto-Indo-European*sem- “one, whole”
    • rootProto-Indo-European*steh₂- “to stand, stay”

    Related: English systema (doublet), Dutch systeem, French système, German System, Italian sistema, Portuguese sistema, Spanish sistema

    Sources