English
hypo
Hypo comes from Ancient Greek ὑπό ‘under’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *upó.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*upó‘under, below’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEὑπόhupó‘under’
- Englishearliest quotation 1851hypo
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*upó‘under, below’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEὑπόhupó‘under’
- Englishearliest quotation 1851hypo
Earliest quotation: 1851, Herman Melville: “whenever my hypos get such an upper hand of…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *upó ‘under, below’
up, above, suggest, upper, sub, sum, suspicion, upward, oft, subaltern, 9 more
Today it means
noun Melancholy; a fit of hypochondria; a morbid depression.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *upó / hypo