Vertebra
/ˈvɜːr.tə.brə/noun
One of the bones forming the spinal column.
Did you know?Latin vertebra comes from vertere, “to turn,” because the spine was imagined as the thing that lets the body bend, twist, and pivot—an everyday word hiding a motion-root with deep magical energy.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*wert-
“to turn, twist”
Latin
Latin
vertere
“to turn, change, or transform”
Late Latin
Latin
vertebra
“a joint or turning part, especially of the spine”
Old French
Old French
vertebre
“a vertebra”
Middle English
English
vertebre
“a bone of the spine”
Modern English
English
vertebra
“one of the bones of the spinal column”