Etymology

photo-

Today it means: light, electromagnetic radiation Full definition →

Ancient Greek φωτο- (phōto-) ← Proto-Hellenic *pʰáwos ← Proto-Indo-European *bʰéh₂os
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*bʰeh₂-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*bʰéh₂os
  3. Proto-Hellenic*pʰáwos
  4. Ancient Greekφᾰ́ος (phắos)
  5. Ancient Greekφῶς (phôs)
  6. Ancient Greekφωτο- (phōto-)
  7. English todayphoto-

From Ancient Greek φωτο- (phōto-), the combining form of φῶς (phôs, “light”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.