English
dimidiate
Dimidiate comes from Latin dīmidiātus ‘halved’, from medius ‘middle, mid, central, between, midway between,…’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *médʰi ‘with, among’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*médʰi‘with, among’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*médʰyos‘middle’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*meðios‘middle’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmedius‘middle, mid, central, between, midway between, in the center’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīmidius‘halved’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdimidiōas dīmidiāre, past participle‘to halve’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīmidiātus‘halved’
- Englishearliest quotation 1915dimidiate
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*médʰi‘with, among’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*médʰyos‘middle’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*meðios‘middle’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmedius‘middle, mid, central, between, midway between, in the center’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīmidius‘halved’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdimidiōas dīmidiāre, past participle‘to halve’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīmidiātus‘halved’
- Englishearliest quotation 1915dimidiate
Earliest quotation: 1915, Guy Cadogan Rothery, ABC of Heraldry: “[…] it may be dimidiated: for instance, half a…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- ‘to do’
do, fact, deal, hot, fair, defense, fan, benefit, fashion, feature, theme, defence, custom, ethnic, sufficient, treasury, treasure, ethical, thesis, aesthetic, defendant, feast, synthetic, theology, doom, tick, deed, ethic, dis, atheist, auditorium, deem, spade, ethos, forfeit, auditor, feral, atheism, thematic, prefect, 124 more
through Proto-Indo-European *médʰi ‘with, among’
through Proto-Indo-European *médʰyos ‘middle’
media, mid, midst, maidan, meso, 25 more
through Proto-Italic *meðios ‘middle’
through Latin medius ‘middle, mid, central, between, midway between,…’
mean, medium, medal, median, mediation, medial, mezzanine, mediator, milieu, moiety, medulla, mediate, moyen, medio, intermezzo, 17 more
through Latin dīmidius ‘halved’
Today it means
adj Divided into two (equal) halves.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *médʰi / dimidiate