English
supplement
Supplement comes from Latin supplementum ‘that which is added to supply a shortage’, from suppleō ‘to provide something’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pleh₁- ‘to fill’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pleh₁-‘to fill’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*plēō‘to fill’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpleō‘Combining form used to form prefixed verbs with the approximate meaning "to fill"’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEsuppleōas supplere‘to provide something’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEsupplementum‘that which is added to supply a shortage’
- Englishearliest quotation 1907supplement
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pleh₁-‘to fill’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*plēō‘to fill’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpleō‘Combining form used to form prefixed verbs with the approximate meaning "to fill"’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEsuppleōas supplere‘to provide something’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEsupplementum‘that which is added to supply a shortage’
- Englishearliest quotation 1907supplement
Earliest quotation: 1907, Robert William Chambers, New York: “Mid-Lent, and the Enemy grins," remarked Selwyn as he…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *pleh₁- ‘to fill’
public, full, complete, plus, fill, poll, plain, popularity, folk, plenty, comply, plural, ample, amplitude, amplify, plethora, puri, plenary, replenish, volk, plenum, plebs, plebeian, fulsome, 73 more
through Proto-Italic *plēō ‘to fill’
people, popular, publication, publican, 15 more
through Latin pleō ‘Combining form used to form prefixed verbs…’
completion, accomplish, manipulation, implement, complement, depletion, replete, deplete, 11 more
Today it means
noun Something added; especially, such an addition added to make up for a deficiency.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *pleh₁- / supplement