Added 9 October 2026
companion
/kəmˈpæn.jən/ noun
In Latin: comes, socius Wiktionary
noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about companion at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
-
A friend, acquaintance or partner; someone with whom one spends time or accompanies
His dog has been his trusted companion for the last five years.
- A person employed to accompany or travel with another.
- The framework on the quarterdeck of a sailing ship through which daylight entered the cabins below.
verb
Origin
From Middle English companion, from Old French compaignon (“companion”) (modern French compagnon), from Late Latin compāniōn- (nominative singular compāniō, whence French copain), from com- + pānis (literally, with + bread), a word first attested in the Frankish Lex Salica as a calque of a Germanic word, probably Frankish *galaibo, *gahlaibō (“messmate”, literally “with-bread”), from Proto-Germanic *gahlaibô. Compare also Old High German galeipo (“messmate”) and Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌷𐌻𐌰𐌹𐌱𐌰 (gahlaiba, “messmate”); and, for the semantics, compare Old Armenian ընկեր (ənker, “friend”, literally “messmate”). More at co-, loaf. Displaced native Old English ġefēra (literally “fellow traveler”).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)