senestre

(on the) left; sinister; left-hand side of the shield

From Middle French senestre, from Old French senestre, from Late Latin sinextrum, from Latin sinistrum. Doublet of sinistre, a borrowing from Latin. The expected result of the Middle French senestre, pronounced approximately as /səˈnɛːtrə/, should have been senêtre in modern French (which does exist in heraldic jargon). A spelling-pronunciation, with etymologically restored /s/, came to predominate as the word became increasingly archaic, having been driven out of common usage as the word for "l