Where does “sputum” come from?
Sputum derives from Latin sputum, the past participle of Latin spuere, traced through Proto-Italic spujō to Proto-Indo-European (s)ptyēw-, a root meaning to spit.
sputum (English): Matter coughed up and expectorated from the...
Definitions
- Matter coughed up and expectorated from the...
Ancestry of “sputum”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Latin | sputum | spittle; inflection of spūtus:
##... |
| 2 | Latin | spuere | third-person plural perfect active indicative of... |