Etymograph

English

addict

Addict comes from Latin addictus ‘assigned, dedicated having been assigned’, from addīcō ‘deliver’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- ‘to point out, to show’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*deyḱ-1‘to point out, to show’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*déyḱeti1‘to be pointing out’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*deikō1‘to show, indicate’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīcō1‘say’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaddīcō1‘deliver’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaddictus1‘assigned, dedicated having been assigned’past participle of addīcō
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1644addict1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English addict
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1644, [Diary entry for 25 October 1644]: “They addict themselves to the civil law.”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*deyḱ-Wiktionary, English addict‘to point out, to show’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*déyḱetiWiktionary, English addict‘to be pointing out’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*deikōWiktionary, English addict‘to show, indicate’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīcōWiktionary, English addict‘say’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaddīcōWiktionary, English addict‘deliver’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaddictusWiktionary, English addict‘assigned, dedicated having been assigned’past participle of addīcō
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1644addictWiktionary, English addict. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1644, [Diary entry for 25 October 1644]: “They addict themselves to the civil law.”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- ‘to point out, to show’

teach, toe, token, digit, indicative, syndicate, tache, syndicalism, 32 more

through Proto-Italic *deikō ‘to show, indicate’

indexation, 16 more

through Latin dīcō ‘say’

index, indicate, indication, preach, dedication, indicator, dictionary, predict, ditto, dedicate, dictator, predicament, dictate, contradictory, contradiction, contradict, predicate, ditty, interdiction, diction, interdict, dictum, indicia, 22 more

Today it means

noun A person who is addicted, especially to a harmful drug.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “addict”. 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 *deyḱ- / addict

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