Where does “telos” come from?

Telos comes from Ancient Greek τέλος, ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European kʷel-, a root of uncertain original meaning.

telos (English): The aim or goal

Definitions

  1. The aim or goal

Ancestry of “telos”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Ancient Greekτέλοςcompletion, accomplishment, fulfillment,...
2Ancient Greekμέροςpart, component, region; share, portion; one's...
3Proto-Hellenic*(h)méros—
Every word from Proto-Hellenic *(h)méros →Every word from Ancient Greek μέρος →Every word from Ancient Greek τέλος →
telos — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer