English
mesial
Mesial comes from Ancient Greek μέσος ‘middle of, between, amidst’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *me ‘near, by, with’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*me‘near, by, with’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*médʰyos‘between’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*métsos‘middle’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμέσοςmésos‘middle of, between, amidst’
- Englishearliest quotation 1922mesial
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*me‘near, by, with’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*médʰyos‘between’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*métsos‘middle’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμέσοςmésos‘middle of, between, amidst’
- Englishearliest quotation 1922mesial
Earliest quotation: 1922, James Joyce, Ulysses: “His pale Galilean eyes were upon her mesial groove.…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *me ‘near, by, with’
median, mediation, mediator, mediate, 20 more
through Proto-Indo-European *médʰyos ‘between’
mean, mid, media, medium, midst, medal, demi, maidan, mezzanine, moiety, medulla, moyen, medio, intermezzo, 30 more
through Proto-Hellenic *métsos ‘middle’
through Ancient Greek μέσος ‘middle of, between, amidst’
Today it means
adj Pertaining to the midline of the body.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *me / mesial