Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “ostracism” come from?

Ostracism comes from Ancient Greek ὀστρακισμός, formed from the Ancient Greek suffix -ισμός, which derives from Ancient Greek -μός, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European -mós.

ostracism (English): In ancient Athens , the temporary banishment by...

Definitions

  1. In ancient Athens , the temporary banishment by...

Ancestry of “ostracism”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchostracisme—
2Ancient Greekὀστρακισμόςbanishment by means of voting with pot shards
3Ancient GreekὀστρακίζωI ostracize, banish by voting with pot shards; to...
4Ancient Greekὄστρακονearthen vessel; the hard shell of animals such as...
5Ancient Greekδέρμαskin, hide
6Ancient Greekγλυφήcarving, carved work; hole cut
7Ancient Greek-ῐ́ᾱ{{l|en|-ia}}; "suffix forming abstract feminine...
8Proto-Indo-European-íh₂—
9Proto-Indo-European-h₂Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups...

Words derived from “ostracism”

  • cyberostracism
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -h₂ →