English
acclaim
Acclaim comes from Latin acclāmō ‘raise a cry at’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *kelh₁- ‘to shout’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kelh₁-1‘to shout’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEclāmō2‘cry out, shout’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacclāmō2‘raise a cry at’
- Englishearliest quotation 1749acclaim2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin clamo
- 2 Wiktionary, English acclaim
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1749, Tobias George Smollett, The Regicide: Or: “Thou ſhalt be crown'd— / An Iron Crown, intenſely…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kelh₁-Wiktionary, Latin clamo‘to shout’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEclāmōWiktionary, English acclaim‘cry out, shout’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacclāmōWiktionary, English acclaim‘raise a cry at’
- Englishearliest quotation 1749acclaimWiktionary, English acclaim. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1749, Tobias George Smollett, The Regicide: Or: “Thou ſhalt be crown'd— / An Iron Crown, intenſely…”
first attested * First attested in the early 14th century (as stated in Wiktionary’s etymology)
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kelh₁- ‘to shout’
low, hell, clear, classic, calendar, haul, reconciliation, declare, clarity, reconcile, claire, clarification, classify, squeal, clarinet, reclaim, irreconcilable, clarion, claret, conciliar, ecclesiastic, clas, ecclesial, 32 more
through Latin clāmō ‘cry out, shout’
proclamation, reclamation, exclamation, proclaim, claimant, clamour, clamor, exclaim, 7 more
Today it means
verb To shout; to call out.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “acclaim”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin clamo. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *kelh₁- / acclaim