English
extenuation
Extenuation comes from Latin extenuātiō ‘a thinning or diminishing”, “rarefaction”’, from tenuō ‘to enfeeble, weaken, wear down’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tenh₂- ‘to stretch, extend’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tenh₂-‘to stretch, extend’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ténh₂us‘thin’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*tən(a)usareconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtenuis‘thin, weak, fine’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEtenuō‘to enfeeble, weaken, wear down’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEextenuō‘to thin, reduce, or diminish’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEextenuātiō‘a thinning or diminishing”, “rarefaction”’
- Englishearliest quotation 1542extenuation
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tenh₂-‘to stretch, extend’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ténh₂us‘thin’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*tən(a)usareconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtenuis‘thin, weak, fine’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEtenuō‘to enfeeble, weaken, wear down’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEextenuō‘to thin, reduce, or diminish’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEextenuātiō‘a thinning or diminishing”, “rarefaction”’
- Englishearliest quotation 1542extenuation
Earliest quotation: 1542, –3, Act 34–5 Hen. VIII: “The saide citie is much decaid…not a little to…”
Formed from extenuate + -ion
Proto-Indo-European *tenh₂- ‘to stretch, extend’
…
Latin tenuō ‘to enfeeble, weaken, wear down’
Latin extenuō ‘to diminish, reduce, thin’
Latin extenuātus ‘diminished, reduced, thinned’
Middle English extenuat ‘(medicine) made thin, emaciated’
English extenuate
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ténh₂us ‘thin’
Today it means
noun The action or process of making or becoming thin; an instance of this; a shrunken condition; leanness, emaciation.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *tenh₂- / extenuation