English
agogic
Agogic may come from German Agoge ‘tempo’, from Ancient Greek ἀγωγή ‘carrying, leading, reduplicated formation’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ- ‘to drive’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eǵ-1‘to drive’uncertain
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂éǵeti1‘to be driving’uncertain
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*ágō1‘to lead, to guide’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἄγω2ágō‘to lead’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἀγωγή3agōgḗ‘carrying, leading, reduplicated formation’uncertain
- Germanc. 1650–presentAgoge3‘tempo’uncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1974agogic3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ἄγω
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ἀγωγή
- 3 Wiktionary, English agogic
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1974, Margery Halford, Piano or Harpsichord?: “On most early instruments, changes were made only at…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eǵ-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ἄγω‘to drive’uncertain
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂éǵetiWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἄγω‘to be driving’uncertain
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*ágōWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἄγω‘to lead, to guide’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἄγωWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἀγωγήágō‘to lead’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἀγωγήWiktionary, English agogicagōgḗ‘carrying, leading, reduplicated formation’uncertain
- Germanc. 1650–presentAgogeWiktionary, English agogic‘tempo’uncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1974agogicWiktionary, English agogic. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1974, Margery Halford, Piano or Harpsichord?: “On most early instruments, changes were made only at…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ- ‘to drive’
suggest, reaction, register, actively, essay, transaction, acre, gesture, radioactive, digest, congestion, inactive, belligerent, agrarian, gestation, ingestion, retroactive, unambiguous, hyperactivity, progesterone, ingest, reagent, ambiguously, samaj, agitate, gerund, gestion, agger, 127 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂éǵeti ‘to be driving’
act, action, active, activity, actual, actor, agency, agent, agenda, activate, ambiguous, squat, ambiguity, assay, agility, agile, agitation, radium, actuator, cogent, actuation, inexact, exigent, actuate, 110 more
through Proto-Hellenic *ágō ‘to lead, to guide’
agony, antagonist, antagonism, agonist, axiomatic, antagonize, agonize, 21 more
through Ancient Greek ἄγω ‘to lead’
Today it means
adj Accentuating a note by extending it slightly beyond its normal time value.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “agogic”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek ἄγω, Ancient Greek ἀγωγή. 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 *h₂eǵ- / agogic