armlet

The word 'armlet' is a transparent English compound formed from the native word 'arm' and the diminutive suffix '-let'. The root 'arm' has a deep Germanic heritage, tracing back to Proto-Indo-European 'h₂er-' (to fit together), which evolved into terms for the jointed limb. The suffix '-let' entered English from Old French, itself derived from Latin '-ellus', a diminutive ending. The compound's logic is straightforward: an 'armlet' is literally a "small arm," which semantically developed in two directions. First, it denotes a small band for the arm, and second, by analogy, it describes a small branch or inlet of a sea, extending the meaning of 'arm' as a projecting part.

Structure: arm (limb/body of water) + let (small/diminutive) - arm: From Old English 'earm', Proto-Germanic 'armaz', meaning the upper limb of the body or, by extension, a branch or inlet. In this word, it functions as the core noun root. - let: From Old English '-lǣtan' (to permit), but as a suffix, it evolved via Middle English from the Old French diminutive '-elet'. It functions as a diminutive suffix meaning "small".