Etymograph

English

element

Element comes from Old French element, from Latin elementum ‘first principle, rudiment’, whose origin is uncertain.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEelementum‘a first principle’
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400element
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500element
  4. Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588element

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEelementum‘a first principle’
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400element
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500element
  4. Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588element

Earliest quotation: c. 1587–1588, Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […]: “Thus ſhall my heart be ſtil combinde with thine,…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-

as, all, old, else, adult, ultimate, ultra, el, alternate, alien, alter, altitude, alumni, qualification, outrage, elder, alt, altar, ou, alpine, abolish, alto, alias, ellen, alum, adolescent, alibi, retaliate, alimony, alp, altruism, auld, ulterior, parallax, proletariat, exalt, foetal, althea, coalesce, aad, 67 more

Today it means

noun One of the simplest or essential parts or principles of which anything consists, or upon which the constitution or fundamental powers of anything are based.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Latin elementum / element

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