Etymology

tendon

T1E1N1D2O1N1

Today it means: A tough band of flexible but inelastic fibrous collagen tissue that connects a muscle with its bony attachment and transmits the force which the muscle exerts. Full definition →

French tendon ← Medieval Latin tendō ← Ancient Greek τένων
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tendon · noun1

  1. Ancient Greek · derived fromτένων“sinew, tendon”
  2. Medieval Latin · borrowed fromtendō
  3. French · borrowed fromtendon
  4. English todaytendon

Borrowed from French tendon or Medieval Latin tendō, from Ancient Greek τένων (ténōn, “sinew, tendon”), modified by association with the verb tendō (“to stretch”). Compare Middle English thenoun.

tendon · noun2

  1. Japanese · borrowed from天丼
  2. English todaytendon

Borrowed from Japanese 天丼 (tendon), clipping of 天ぷら丼 (tenpura donburi).

Words from the same roots

Medieval Latintendō all →

chordae tendineae

Ancient Greekτένων all →

tendinitisendotenonepitenonparatenonteno-

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.