Etymology

xylophagous

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Today it means: Feeding on wood. (of insects etc.) Full definition →

Ancient Greek ἔφαγον (éphagon) ← Proto-Indo-European *bʰh₂g- ← English xylo-
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The story

  1. Ancient Greekξῠ́λον (xŭ́lon)
  2. Englishxylo-
  3. Proto-Indo-European*bʰeh₂g-
  4. Proto-Indo-European*bʰh₂g-
  5. Ancient Greekἔφαγον (éphagon)
  6. English todayxylophagous

From xylo- (“wood”) + -phagous (“eating”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.