Where does “mercaptan” come from?

mercaptan (English) comes from German Mercaptan, from Latin captans, from Latin captō, from Latin capiō, from Proto-Italic kapiō, from Proto-Italic kapjō, from Proto-Indo-European kh₂pyéti, from Proto-Indo-European keh₂p- — to seize, grab; to seize; take up; lift; to take,...

mercaptan (English): Any of a class of organic compounds of sulphur, (R-SH) where R represents an alkyl or other organic substituent. They tend to be foul-smelling. They are also termed thiols or thioalcohols

Definitions

  1. Any of a class of organic compounds of sulphur, (R-SH) where R represents an alkyl or other organic substituent. They tend to be foul-smelling. They are also termed thiols or thioalcohols

Ancestry of “mercaptan”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanMercaptanmercaptan
2Latincaptanscapturing
3Latincaptōto strive to seize, catch or grasp at
4Latincapiōto take, to capture, to catch, to seize, to take captive, to storm
5Proto-Italickapiōtake
6Proto-Italickapjōtake, seize
7Proto-Indo-Europeankh₂pyéti
8Proto-Indo-Europeankeh₂p-to seize, grab; to seize; take up; lift; to take,...

Words derived from “mercaptan

Every word from Proto-Indo-European keh₂p-
mercaptan — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer