English
acerbity
Acerbity comes from Latin acerbus ‘bitter’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- ‘sharp’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eḱ-‘sharp’root as named
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*akriðosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacerbus‘bitter’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEacerbitās
- Frenchc. 1600–presentacerbité
- Englishearliest quotation 1848acerbity
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eḱ-‘sharp’root as named
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*akriðosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacerbus‘bitter’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEacerbitās
- Frenchc. 1600–presentacerbité
- Englishearliest quotation 1848acerbity
Earliest quotation: 1848, Elizabeth Gaskell, London: Chapman and Hall: “[…] the recollection of that yesterday […] made him…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- ‘sharp’
hear, edge, egg, ear, acid, hammer, eager, axe, acute, oxide, vinegar, mediocre, acne, paragon, acupuncture, mediocrity, hark, acacia, acetate, acumen, acme, acyl, acuity, roselle, acrimony, acrid, rosacea, 72 more
through Latin acerbus ‘bitter’
Today it means
noun Sourness of taste, with bitterness and astringency, like that of unripe fruit.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- / acerbity