English
evacuation
Evacuation comes from Late Latin ēvacuātiō ‘emptying (of a vessel), evacuation’, and goes back to Latin vacuō.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvacuō‘make empty’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEēvacuō‘to empty out’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEēvacuātiō‘emptying (of a vessel), evacuation’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400evacuation
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500evacuacioun
- Englishearliest quotation 1685evacuation
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvacuō‘make empty’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEēvacuō‘to empty out’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEēvacuātiō‘emptying (of a vessel), evacuation’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400evacuation
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500evacuacioun
- Englishearliest quotation 1685evacuation
Earliest quotation: 1685, John Pechey: “The Abſcess being broken an Ulcer is left behind,…”
Formed from evacuate + -ion
Latin vacuō ‘make empty’
Latin ēvacuō ‘to empty out, evacuate’
Latin ēvacuātus ‘emptied out’
English evacuate
Linked words
through Latin vacuus ‘empty, vacant, unoccupied’
Today it means
noun The act of evacuating; leaving a place in an orderly fashion, especially for safety.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin vacuō / evacuation