English
gerund
Gerund comes from Latin gerundium ‘the gerund’, from gerendus ‘which is to be carried out’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eǵ-reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*gezō‘to carry, bear’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEgerō‘carry, bear’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEgerendus‘which is to be carried out’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEgerundium‘the gerund’
- Englishearliest quotation 1991gerund
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eǵ-reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*gezō‘to carry, bear’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEgerō‘carry, bear’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEgerendus‘which is to be carried out’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEgerundium‘the gerund’
- Englishearliest quotation 1991gerund
Earliest quotation: 1991, Edward Johnson, The Handbook of Good English: “Compounds in which gerunds are the second element look…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ-
act, action, active, activity, actual, strategy, actor, agency, agent, suggest, essay, acre, agenda, activate, agony, ambiguous, squat, agile, ambiguity, agility, antagonist, assay, agrarian, agitation, digestion, axiom, antagonism, agonist, radium, actuator, agitate, antagonize, digestible, cogent, actuation, glucagon, samaj, inexact, stratagem, agonize, 140 more
through Latin gerō ‘carry, bear’
register, suggestion, gesture, congestion, digest, gestation, ingestion, belligerent, progesterone, ingest, gestion, agger, 14 more
Today it means
noun A verbal form that functions as a verbal noun.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ- / gerund