English
onomatopoeia
Onomatopoeia comes from Ancient Greek ὀνομᾰτοποιός ‘coiner of names’, from ποιέω ‘to make’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kʷey- ‘to pay’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷey-‘to pay’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*kʷoiwéyō‘to make’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEποιέωpoiéō‘to make’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEὀνομᾰτοποιόςonomătopoiós‘coiner of names’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEὀνομᾰτοποιῐ́ᾱonomătopoiĭ́ā
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEonomatopoeïa
- Englishearliest quotation 1553onomatopoeia
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷey-‘to pay’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*kʷoiwéyō‘to make’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEποιέωpoiéō‘to make’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEὀνομᾰτοποιόςonomătopoiós‘coiner of names’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEὀνομᾰτοποιῐ́ᾱonomătopoiĭ́ā
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEonomatopoeïa
- Englishearliest quotation 1553onomatopoeia
Earliest quotation: 1553, Thomas Wilson, Word Making: “A woꝛde makinge called of the Grecians Onomatopeia is…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kʷey- ‘to pay’
pain, penalty, punishment, pine, punish, titanium, penal, punitive, impunity, subpoena, whey, 21 more
through Proto-Hellenic *kʷoiwéyō ‘to make’
through Ancient Greek ποιέω ‘to make’
Today it means
noun The property of a word that sounds like what it represents.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *kʷey- / onomatopoeia