English
jejune
Jejune comes from Latin iēiūnus ‘fasting’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₁yaǵ- ‘to sacrifice’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁yaǵ-‘to sacrifice’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁yaǵ-yu-sreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*jagjūnosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEiēiūnus‘fasting’
- Englishearliest quotation 1702jejune
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁yaǵ-‘to sacrifice’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁yaǵ-yu-sreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*jagjūnosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEiēiūnus‘fasting’
- Englishearliest quotation 1702jejune
Earliest quotation: 1702, Thomas Brown: “I have often wondered why some late Writers should…”
Linked words
through Latin iēiūnus ‘fasting’
Today it means
adj Not nutritious.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₁yaǵ- / jejune