viscivorus (Latin)
Where does "viscivorus" come from?
The Latin word 'viscivorus' is a compound derived from 'viscum,' the word for mistletoe, and 'vorō,' meaning to devour. It literally describes something that feeds on mistletoe, tracing its roots back to these two classical Latin foundation words.
Full etymology tree
- viscivorus (Latin), 'mistletoe-eating'
- compound viscum (Latin), 'mistletoe'
- inherited *weyḱs- (Proto-Indo-European), 'mistletoe'
- compound vorō (Latin), 'to devour; to eat greedily'
- inherited *gʷorh₃éh₂ (Proto-Indo-European)
- derived *gʷerh₃- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to swallow, devour, eat'
- inherited *gʷorh₃éh₂ (Proto-Indo-European)
- compound viscum (Latin), 'mistletoe'
Updated June 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris