Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “traceable” come from?

Traceable derives from Middle English -able, Old French -able, and Latin -abilis, combined with Latin traho, meaning to draw or pull.

traceable (English): Capable of being traced; possible to track down

Definitions

  1. Capable of being traced; possible to track down

Ancestry of “traceable”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishtraceAn act of tracing; An enquiry sent out for a...
2Middle EnglishtraceA trail, track or road; a pathway or route; One's...
3Old Frenchtracetrace
4Old Frenchtracier—
5Latintractiāre—
6Latintractusdragged, having been dragged; trailed, having...
7Latintraheresecond-person singular future passive indicative...
8LatintrahoI drag, pull; I trail; I extract, withdraw
9Proto-Italictraɣō—
10Proto-Indo-Europeantregʰ-to drag, pull?; to run, walk
11Proto-Indo-Europeandʰregʰ-to run

Words derived from “traceable”

  • untraceable
  • traceably
  • untraceably
  • nontraceable
  • untraceableness
  • traceableness
  • hypotraceable
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰregʰ- →