English
consonant
Consonant may come from Middle English consonant.
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500consonantuncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1710same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500consonantuncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1710same form
Earliest quotation: 1710, William Beveridge, The true nature of the Christian church: “Each one pretends that his opinion […] is consonant…”
The story
The Latin is a calque of Ancient Greek σύμφωνον (súmphōnon).
Linked words
through Latin sonāre ‘to sound’
Today it means
noun A sound that results from the passage of air through restrictions of the oral cavity; any sound that is not the dominant sound of a syllable, the dominant sound generally being a vowel.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle English consonant / consonant