English
dissection
Dissection comes from Latin dissecō ‘to dissect, dismember’, from secō ‘to cut, cut off’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sek-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sek-‘to cut, cut off, sever’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*sékh₁yetireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sekaō‘to cut’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsecō‘to cut, cut off’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdissecō‘to dissect, dismember’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdissectioas dissectiōnemby way of Middle French dissection
- Englishearliest quotation 2015dissection
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sek-‘to cut, cut off, sever’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*sékh₁yetireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sekaō‘to cut’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsecō‘to cut, cut off’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdissecō‘to dissect, dismember’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdissectioas dissectiōnemby way of Middle French dissection
- Englishearliest quotation 2015dissection
Earliest quotation: 2015, Moritz Crönlein et al.: “Most of the carotid artery dissections (CADs) occur spontaneously…”
Equivalent to dissect + -ion
Proto-Indo-European *sek- ‘to cut’
Proto-Italic *sekaō ‘to cut’
Latin secō ‘to cut’
Latin dissecare ‘to cut asunder, cut up’
Latin dissectus ‘dissected’
English dissect
The story
Borrowed from Latin dissectiōnem, perhaps via Middle French dissection.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *sek- ‘to cut, cut off, sever’
saw, design, sign, ship, seal, sack, scarlet, sawyer, sax, shingle, scythe, sich, sigil, sedge, sain, desiccant, desiccation, 61 more
through Proto-Italic *sekaō ‘to cut’
sexuality, homosexual, 20 more
through Latin secō ‘to cut, cut off’
sex, risk, sexual, segment, insect, sickle, het, seg, brassica, 22 more
Today it means
noun The act of dissecting.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *sek- / dissection