Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “apatite” come from?

Apatite is a mineral whose name derives from German Apatit, from Ancient Greek ἀπάτη meaning deception, likely referring to the stone's resemblance to other minerals.

apatite (English): A calcium fluoride phosphate of variable...

Definitions

  1. A calcium fluoride phosphate of variable...

Ancestry of “apatite”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanApatitapatite
2German-it-ite
3French-itéAlternative form of -té, giving a quality or...
4Latin-īta—
5Ancient Greek-ίτηςSuffix forming a masculine noun: one connected...
6Ancient Greekπολῑ́τηςcitizen
7Ancient Greek-τηςForms nouns representing a state of being; Added...
8Proto-Hellenic-tāts—
9Proto-Indo-European-teh₂tsUsed to form nouns representing state of being
10Proto-Indo-European-teh₂Used to form nouns representing state of being
11Proto-Indo-European-tósCreates verbal adjectives from verb stems

Words derived from “apatite”

  • apatitic
  • bioapatite
  • chlorapatite
  • manganapatite
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tós →