Interstice
/ˈɪn.tər.stɪs/noun
A small gap, space, or interval between things.
Did you know?Interstice comes from Latin interstitium, a noun built from inter- (“between”) and sistere (“to stand”), so the word began as a kind of “standing between” rather than just an empty space.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*sta-
“to stand”
Latin
Latin
sistere
“to cause to stand, stand still”
Latin
Latin
interstitium
“a standing between; an interval or pause”
Middle English
English
interstice
“a gap or interval between things”
Modern English
English
interstice
“a small gap, space, or interval between things”