Etymograph

English

inarticulate

Inarticulate comes from Latin inarticulatus ‘indistinct’, from articulātus ‘distinct’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂er- ‘to join’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂er-‘to join’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂r-tú-s‘that which is fit together’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*artusreconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEartus‘joint’
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEarticulus‘joint’
  6. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEarticulātus‘distinct’
  7. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinarticulatus‘indistinct’
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1834inarticulate

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂er-‘to join’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂r-tú-s‘that which is fit together’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*artusreconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEartus‘joint’
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEarticulus‘joint’
  6. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEarticulātus‘distinct’
  7. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinarticulatus‘indistinct’
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1834inarticulate

Earliest quotation: 1834, Letitia Elizabeth Landon, London: Richard Bentley: “Major Johnstone strove to speak, but the words died…”

Formed from in- + articulate

Proto-Indo-European *h₁én ‘in’

Proto-Germanic *in ‘into’

English in-

Proto-Indo-European *h₂er- ‘to join’

…

Proto-Italic *artus

Latin artus ‘joint’

Latin articulus ‘joint’

Latin articulātus ‘distinct, articulated, jointed’

English articulate

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂er- ‘to join’

order, reason, ready, art, army, rate, arm, artist, ratio, ordinary, harmony, alarm, armor, coordination, coordinate, anarchy, arthritis, ornament, harmonic, arithmetic, harmonious, adorn, subordinate, ordination, armament, artisan, aristocratic, inert, ornate, armadillo, harmonize, rime, rta, ordo, ordinator, ordinal, ordinate, archon, ordain, armature, 78 more

through Latin articulus ‘joint’

article, articulation, articular, 4 more

Today it means

adj Not articulated in normal words.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂er- / inarticulate

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