Where does “electrocautery” come from?

Electrocautery comes from English cautery combined with electro-, from Latin electrum and Ancient Greek ἤλεκτρον, meaning amber or a gold-silver alloy.

electrocautery (English): cauterization by the use of an instrument heated...

Definitions

  1. cauterization by the use of an instrument heated...

Ancestry of “electrocautery”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishcauteryThe process of using either extreme heat or...
2Latincautēriumbranding iron
3Ancient Greekκαυτήρbranding iron
4Ancient GreekκαίωI light, kindle, set on fire; I burn, burn up; I...
5Proto-Hellenic*káyyō—
Every word from Proto-Hellenic *káyyō →Every word from Ancient Greek καίω →Every word from Ancient Greek καυτήρ →