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Am·o·rite

(ămə-rīt′)

A member of one of several ancient Semitic peoples primarily inhabiting Canaan, where they preceded the Israelites, and Babylonia.

[From Hebrew 'ĕmōrî, Amorite, from Akkadian amurrû, westerner, Amorite, from amurru, western geographical and tribal designation, perhaps from Sumerian martu, westerner, country to the west of Sumer.]

Amo·rite′ adj.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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