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Origin and history of hydrant

hydrant(n.)

"apparatus for drawing water from a street main," 1806, from Greek hydr-, stem of hydor "water" (from suffixed form of PIE root *wed- (1) "water; wet") + -ant. OED (1989) double-damns it as "Irregularly formed" and "of U.S. origin."

also from 1806

Entries linking to hydrant

-ant

agent or instrumental suffix, from Old French and French -ant, from Latin -antem, accusative of -ans, present-participle suffix of many Latin verbs. Compare -ance.

*wed-(1)

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "water; wet."

It might form all or part of: abound; anhydrous; carbohydrate; clepsydra; dropsy; hydra; hydrangea; hydrant; hydrargyrum; hydrate; hydraulic; hydro-; hydrogen; hydrophobia; hydrous; Hydrus; inundate; inundation; kirsch-wasser; nutria; otter; redound; redundant; surround; undine; undulant; undulate; undulation; vodka; wash; water (n.1); wet; whiskey; winter.

It might also be the source of: Hittite watar, Sanskrit udrah, Greek hydor, Old Church Slavonic and Russian voda, Lithuanian vanduo, Old Prussian wundan, Gaelic uisge "water;" Latin unda "wave;" Old English wæter, Old High German wazzar, Gothic wato "water."

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