English
etch
Etch comes from Dutch etsen ‘to etch’, from Old High German azzon ‘to cause to bite or feed’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ed- ‘to eat’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁ed-‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁édti‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*etaną‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*atjaną‘to cause/allow to eat, feed (an animal)’reconstructedcausative of *etaną
- Old High Germanc. 750–1050azzon‘to cause to bite or feed’
- Germanc. 1650–presentätzen‘to etch’
- Dutchc. 1500–presentetsen‘to etch’
- Englishearliest quotation a. 1705etch
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁ed-‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁édti‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*etaną‘to eat’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*atjaną‘to cause/allow to eat, feed (an animal)’reconstructedcausative of *etaną
- Old High Germanc. 750–1050azzon‘to cause to bite or feed’
- Germanc. 1650–presentätzen‘to etch’
- Dutchc. 1500–presentetsen‘to etch’
- Englishearliest quotation a. 1705etch
Earliest quotation: a. 1705, John Locke, Of the Conduct of the Understanding: “There are many such empty terms to be found…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₁ed- ‘to eat’
eating, anna, ana, fret, anodyne, esca, 20 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₁édti ‘to eat’
obesity, edible, phage, 11 more
through Proto-Germanic *etaną ‘to eat’
Today it means
verb To cut into a surface with an acid or other corrosive substance in order to make a pattern. Best known as a technique for creating printing plates, but also used for decoration on metal, and, in modern industry, to make circuit boards.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₁ed- / etch