τέρνακα τῆς κάκτου τοῦ φυτοῦ καυλόν

Grammatical information: f.

Meaning: `heel', also metaph. of the lower part of several objects etc. (ep. Ion. poet., Arist., hell.).

Other forms: second. - νᾰ(LXX).

Compounds: Some compp., e.g. πτερνο-κοπίς f. "heel-pusher", nickname (middl. a. new com.; Wackernagel Unt. 196); *ὑπό-πτερνος `under the heel' in ὑποπτερν-ίς, - ίδος f. `base, underlay' (Ph. a. Hero Bel.).

Derivatives: πτερν-ίς, - ίδος f. `foot of a bowl' (middl. com.), - ίζω `to hit with the heel, trip one up, to supplant someone out of his position, to provide a shoe with a new heel' (LXX, Com. Adesp.) with - ιστής m. (Ph.), - ισμός m. (LXX). -- On itself stands, with unclear meaning development, πτέρνιξ, - ῐκος m. `main stem of a cactus' (Arist.), beside which τέρνακα τῆς κάκτου τοῦ φυτοῦ καυλόν H., s.v.

Origin: IE [Indo-European] [823] *tpersnā `heel'

Etymology: Old designation of the heel also used of the haunch (Lat.) or the loin (Hitt.): Lat. perna, Germ., e.g. Goth. fairzna f., Hitt. paršina-(= paršna-; with paršnāi- `squat down'), IE * persnā. Beside it in Indo-Iran. with secondary vowellength (soc. vr̥ddhiformation; Benveniste BSL 50, 41 f.) Skt. pā́rṣṇi- f., Av. pāšna- n. `heel'. Initial πτ-, then, is unoriginal and unxplained as in πτίσσω, πτόλεμος and πτόλις (s. vv. w. lit.); it will represent an original * tpersn-. WP. 2, 50f., Pok. 823, W.-Hofmann s. perna, Mayrhofer s. pā́rṣniḥ; older lit. in Bq. -- On late πτέρνα `ham' s. πέρνα.

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