Where does “pigeonhole” come from?
I appreciate the detailed instructions, but I need to flag a critical issue with this chain: it appears internally inconsistent and doesn't actually support the word "pigeonhole." The chain shows: - English hole → Middle English hole → Old English hol → Old English helan → Latin oleum → Ancient Greek ἔλαιον → Latin oleum → PIE -kos This sequence has "Latin oleum" appearing twice, shifts unexpectedly between "hole/hol/helan" (which relate to "hollow/conceal") and "oleum" (which means "oil"), and doesn't explain how we arrive at "pigeonhole" at all. **I cannot write an accurate one-sentence summary because the chain doesn't support the headword.** To proceed, I would need: 1. Clarification of whether "pigeonhole" should trace through "hole" or "pigeon"
pigeonhole (English): One of an array of compartments for housing...
Definitions
- One of an array of compartments for housing...
Ancestry of “pigeonhole”, step by step
pigeonhole traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English pigeon
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | pigeon | One of several birds of the family Columbidae,... |
| 2 | English | business | A specific commercial enterprise or... |
| 3 | Middle English | busines | — |
| 4 | Old English | bisiġnes | business, busyness |
| 5 | Old English | -nes | Used to form abstract nouns, usually from... |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | -nassī | Used to form abstract nouns, usually from... |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | -inassuz | -ness |
| 8 | Proto-West Germanic | -ī | -ness, -th |
| 9 | Proto-Germanic | -į̄ | -th |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -íh₂ | — |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | -h₂ | Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups... |
via English hole
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | hole | A hollow place or cavity; an excavation; a pit;... |
| 2 | Middle English | hole | healthy; safe; whole, complete, full |
| 3 | Old English | hol | a hole, a hollow; calumny; slander |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | hol | hollow; hole |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | hulą | a hollow; depression; hole |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | hulaz | hollow |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱel- | to cover; to incline |