English
argumentum
Argumentum comes from Latin argūmentum ‘argument’, and goes back to arguō ‘to clarify, to make plain’.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEarguō‘to clarify, to make plain’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEargūmentum‘argument’
- Englishearliest quotation 1682argumentum
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEarguō‘to clarify, to make plain’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEargūmentum‘argument’
- Englishearliest quotation 1682argumentum
Earliest quotation: 1682, Sir Edward Coke, Argumentum Anti-Normannicum: “Argumentum anti-Normannicum: or, An argument proving, from ancient histories…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂erǵ- ‘white, shining’
through Latin arguō ‘to clarify, to make plain’
Today it means
noun An argument or appeal, especially as used in various Latin phrases.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin arguō / argumentum