Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “nonvocalic” come from?

nonvocalic (English) comes from English vocalic, from French vocalique, from French vocal, from Old French vocal, from Latin vōcālis, from Latin vōx, from Proto-Italic wōks, from Proto-Indo-European wṓkʷs — to speak, to sound out.

nonvocalic (English): Not vocalic; not used as a vowel; nonverbal or...

Definitions

  1. Not vocalic; not used as a vowel; nonverbal or...

Ancestry of “nonvocalic”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishvocalicUsed as a vowel, as opposed to consonantal,...
2Frenchvocaliquevocalic, vowel
3Frenchvocalvocal, related to the voice
4Old Frenchvocalvocal
5Latinvōcālis—
6Latinvōx—
7Proto-Italicwōksvoice
8Proto-Indo-Europeanwṓkʷsvoice, speech
9Proto-Indo-Europeanwekʷ-to speak, to sound out
Every word from Proto-Indo-European wekʷ- →