"bony," early 15c., from Medieval Latin ossous, from Latin osseus "bony, of bone," from os (genitive ossis) "bone," from PIE *ost- "bone" (cognates: Sanskrit asthi, Hittite hashtai-, Greek osteon "bone," Greek ostrakon "oyster shell," Avestan ascu- "shinbone," Welsh asgwrn, Armenian oskr, Albanian asht "bone"). The word was later reformed in English (1680s), perhaps by influence of French osseux.