English
interstice
Interstice comes from Middle English interstice.
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500interstice
- Englishearliest quotation 2013same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500interstice
- Englishearliest quotation 2013same form
Earliest quotation: 2013, Simon Jenkins, Gibraltar and the Falklands deny the logic of history: “Relics of the British empire now mostly survive in…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- ‘stand’
state, post, stay, rest, stand, distance, stadium, stood, establish, stable, constitution, stability, instance, contest, substance, stem, distant, instant, destination, testimony, destiny, stud, prostitution, stationary, stool, stale, prostitute, substitution, distal, extant, stamina, attest, stow, steadfast, stead, stasis, stalwart, astute, oust, testimonial, 140 more
through Proto-Indo-European *stísteh₂ti ‘to be standing up, to be getting up’
system, consistent, static, histone, stater, 32 more
through Latin sistō ‘to stand, to stop’
assistant, assistance, assist, resist, consist, insist, persistent, persist, desist, subsistence, armistice, solstice, existentialist, 5 more
Today it means
noun A small opening or space between objects, especially adjacent objects or objects set closely together, such as between cords in a rope, components of a multiconductor electrical cable or atoms in a crystal.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle English interstice / interstice