English
pugnacity
Pugnacity comes from Latin pugnacitas ‘desire or fondness for fighting’, from pugnus ‘fist’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pewǵ-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pewǵ-‘to punch, fist-fight’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*puǵnosreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pugnos‘fist’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpugnus‘fist’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEpugnō‘to fight, combat’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEpugnāx‘combative, fond of fighting’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEpugnacitas‘desire or fondness for fighting’
- Englishearliest quotation 2022pugnacity
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pewǵ-‘to punch, fist-fight’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*puǵnosreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pugnos‘fist’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpugnus‘fist’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEpugnō‘to fight, combat’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEpugnāx‘combative, fond of fighting’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEpugnacitas‘desire or fondness for fighting’
- Englishearliest quotation 2022pugnacity
Earliest quotation: 2022, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Children of Memory: “His sister is out front, cleaning her gun with…”
Formed from -acity
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *pewǵ- ‘to punch, fist-fight’
point, fuck, punch, fist, pivot, puncture, poignant, pungent, pygmy, punto, punctuate, compunction, pugilist, 41 more
through Latin pugnō ‘to fight, combat’
Today it means
noun The act or characteristic of being aggressive or combative.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *pewǵ- / pugnacity