English
deplete
Deplete comes from Latin dēplētus ‘empty’, from pleō ‘Combining form used to form prefixed verbs…’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pleh₁-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pleh₁-‘to fill’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*plēō‘to fill’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpleō‘Combining form used to form prefixed verbs with the approximate meaning "to fill"’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdepleō‘to empty out, draw off, let, drain’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēplētus‘empty’
- Englishearliest quotation 1716deplete
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pleh₁-‘to fill’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*plēō‘to fill’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpleō‘Combining form used to form prefixed verbs with the approximate meaning "to fill"’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdepleō‘to empty out, draw off, let, drain’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēplētus‘empty’
- Englishearliest quotation 1716deplete
Earliest quotation: 1716, John Radcliffe, Electuarium Phthiſicum: “However, every Practitioner ought to be appriz'd of a…”
first attested First attested in 1716 (as stated in the etymology)
The story
First attested in 1716; originally a medical term.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *pleh₁- ‘to fill’
public, full, plus, fill, complete, poll, plenty, popularity, folk, plain, comply, plural, ample, amplify, amplitude, puri, plenary, plethora, replenish, volk, plenum, fulsome, plebs, plebeian, 73 more
through Proto-Italic *plēō ‘to fill’
people, popular, publication, publican, 15 more
through Latin pleō ‘Combining form used to form prefixed verbs…’
supply, accomplish, implement, manipulation, completion, supplement, complement, replete, 11 more
Today it means
verb To reduce the amount of; to remove (a substance from something)
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *pleh₁- / deplete