Osselet
/ˈɒs.ə.lɛt/noun
A small bone, especially a little bone in an animal’s limb or a bony growth near a joint.
Did you know?Osselet enters English through French, and its Latin ancestor os/ossis also gave us words like ossify and osseous, all built on the ancient idea of bone as something hard, fixed, and enduring.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₁ost-
“bone”
Latin
Latin
os, ossis
“bone”
Late Latin
Latin
ossiculum
“little bone”
Old French
Old French
osselet
“small bone; little bone”
Modern English
English
osselet
“a small bone or bony growth”