Where does “periodic” come from?
Periodic comes from English periodic, from Latin periodicus, from Ancient Greek περιοδικός (periodikos), meaning "going around," from περί (peri, "around") and ὁδός (hodos, "way" or "path").
periodic (English): Relative to a period or periods; Having repeated...
Definitions
- Relative to a period or periods; Having repeated...
Ancestry of “periodic”, step by step
periodic traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English iodic
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | iodic | of, or relating to iodine or its compounds,... |
| 2 | French | iodique | iodic |
| 3 | French | iodé | past participle of ioder; iodized, iodinated |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | ἰοειδής | violet |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | -ειδής | like, connected to, from the nature of, full of;... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | -ής | adjective suffix |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -ēs | Primarily forms adjectival bahuvrīhi compounds |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -ess | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -os | Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;... |
via French périodique
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | périodique | periodic; periodical |
| 2 | Latin | periodicus | periodic, periodical |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | περιοδικός | acquired in one's travels; periodic, recurrent... |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | περίοδος | going round in a circle, flank march;... |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | ὁδός | threshold; road, path, way; journey, trip,... |
| 6 | Proto-Hellenic | *hodós | — |