English
maceral
Maceral comes from Latin mācerō ‘macerate’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *meh₂ḱeseh₂ti.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*meh₂ḱeseh₂tireconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmācerō‘macerate’
- Englishtodaymaceral
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*meh₂ḱeseh₂tireconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmācerō‘macerate’
- Englishtodaymaceral
Formed from mācerō ‘macerate’ + -al
The story
Coined by British birth control campaigner and paleontologist Marie Stopes in 1935.
Every English word from Proto-Indo-European *meh₂ḱeseh₂ti
Today it means
noun A component of coal or oil shale.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *meh₂ḱeseh₂ti / maceral