English
calcareous
Calcareous comes from Latin calcārius ‘of or pertaining to lime’, and goes back to calx.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcalx‘lime’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcalcārius‘of or pertaining to lime’
- Englishearliest quotation 1869calcareous
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history not traced here.
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcalx‘lime’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcalcārius‘of or pertaining to lime’
- Englishearliest quotation 1869calcareous
Earliest quotation: 1869, Alfred Russel Wallace, The Malay Archipelago: “The next morning I went to see the hot-springs…”
Linked words
through Latin calx ‘lime’
chalk, calcium, quilt, counterpoint, calculus, causeway, calcite, caulk, recalcitrant, inculcate, calzone, 34 more
through Latin calcārius ‘of or pertaining to lime’
Today it means
adj Resembling, containing, or composed of calcium carbonate or limestone; chalky.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin calx / calcareous