Etymograph

English

acetic

Acetic comes from Latin acētum ‘vinegar’, and goes back to acēre ‘to be sour’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacēre1‘to be sour’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacētum1‘vinegar’
  3. Frenchc. 1600–presentacétique1
  4. Englishtodayacetic1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English acetic

Earlier history not traced here. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacēreWiktionary, English acetic‘to be sour’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacētumWiktionary, English acetic‘vinegar’
  3. Frenchc. 1600–presentacétiqueWiktionary, English acetic
  4. EnglishtodayaceticWiktionary, English acetic

Equivalent to acet- + -ic

Linked words

through Latin acētum ‘vinegar’

acetate, 13 more

Today it means

adj Of, pertaining to, or producing vinegar.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “acetic”. 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 / Latin acēre / acetic

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