forceps.
pair of tongs, pincers;
Meaning & usage
tongs, pincers, forceps
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gʷʰer- Proto-Indo-European *-mós Proto-Indo-European *gʷʰormós Proto-Italic *xʷormos Proto-Italic *formos substratebor.? Proto-Indo-European *kap- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *kapyéti Proto-Italic *kapjō Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Italic *-s Proto-Italic *-kap-s Proto-Italic *formokaps? Latin forceps Uncertain. Often derived from prehistoric *formokaps through syncope. Ultimately from formus (“warm”) + -ceps (“taker”). This etymology is partially based on Festus, who etymologizes the term as such: :* c. 2nd century, Sextus Pompeius Festus, De verborum significatione 91: formucapes forcipes dictae, quod forma capiant forcipes were named formucapes, because they hold warm things It is not clear whether the term formucapes actually existed in Latin at some point, and it's possible that the derivation from formus is merely a folk etymology. De Vaan mentions two possible alternatives: * It might reflect *foro-kaps-, itself from *foros. * It might contain an element related to ferrum (“iron”). In support of this theory, de Vaan notes that the word denotes a tool used by craftsmen.
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Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.