Where does “copulate” come from?
Copulate comes from Latin copulare, derived from copula meaning to join or fasten, itself from copulo, combining con- with apere to fit together.
copulate (English): To engage in sexual intercourse; Joined;...
Definitions
- To engage in sexual intercourse; Joined;...
Ancestry of “copulate”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | copulatus | united, joined, coupled; connected |
| 2 | Latin | cōpulō | to bind or tie together, unite, join, couple |
| 3 | Latin | cōpula | a bond, tie, band or other connecting item |
| 4 | Latin | coapula | — |
| 5 | Latin | apio | dative singular of apium; ablative singular of... |
| 6 | Latin | apium | parsley; celery; genitive plural of apis |
| 7 | Latin | Apis | A seaport town of Egypt situated at the borders with Marmarica |
| 8 | Ancient Greek | Ἄπις | — |
| 9 | Coptic | ϩⲁⲡⲉ | the Apis bull, a bull worshipped as a herald of the gods (first Ptah, then Osiris, then Atum) |
| 10 | Egyptian | ḥp | the god Apis |