Where does “eccentricity” come from?
Eccentricity comes from Middle French excentrique, from Latin eccentricus, from Ancient Greek ἔκκεντρος, meaning off-center, from κέντρον meaning center.
eccentricity (English): The quality of being eccentric or odd; any...
Definitions
- The quality of being eccentric or odd; any...
Ancestry of “eccentricity”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | eccentricitas | eccentricity, outcenteredness |
| 2 | Latin | eccentricus | — |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | ἔκκεντρος | not having the earth as the center of an orbit |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | κέντρον | Something with a sharp point: point, spike, spur;... |
| 5 | Proto-Hellenic | *kéntron | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | *ḱéntrom | pointed tool |