English
glaucous
Glaucous comes from Latin glaucus ‘shining’, and goes back to Ancient Greek γλαυκός ‘blue-green, blue-grey’.
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEγλαυκόςglaukós‘blue-green, blue-grey’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEglaucus‘shining’
- Englishearliest quotation 1955glaucous
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEγλαυκόςglaukós‘blue-green, blue-grey’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEglaucus‘shining’
- Englishearliest quotation 1955glaucous
Earliest quotation: 1955, Vladimir Nabokov: “I realised I was the only shopper in that…”
Every English word from Ancient Greek γλαυκός
Today it means
adj Of a pale grey or bluish-green, especially when covered with a powdery residue.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Ancient Greek γλαυκός / glaucous