Etymograph

English

alcoholy

Alcoholy comes from Medieval Latin alcohol, from Arabic كُحْل ‘antimony’, and ultimately from Sumerian na₄.šem-bi-zi-da ‘kohl’.

  1. Sumerianc. 3100–1800 BCEna₄.šem-bi-zi-da1transliteratedcuneiform na₄.šem-bi-zi-da, a transliteration; the original signs are in Wiktionary‘kohl’
  2. Akkadianc. 2500–100 BCEguḫlum2transliteratedcuneiform guḫlum, a transliteration; the original signs are in Wiktionary
  3. Aramaicc. 1000 BCE–700 CEכוחלא2kuḥlā‘stibnite, antimony’
  4. Arabicc. 500–presentكُحْل2kuḥl‘antimony’
  5. Andalusian Arabicc. 800–1600كُحُول2kuḥūl
  6. Medieval Latinmodernalcohol2
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500alcofol2
  8. English1500–presentalcohol2
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1936alcoholy2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Akkadian 𒎎𒋆𒁉𒍣𒁕
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English alcoholy
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1936, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, St. Louis: “This distilled dry gin is smooth and potent, without…”.

Lineage

  1. Sumerianc. 3100–1800 BCEna₄.šem-bi-zi-daWiktionary, Akkadian 𒎎𒋆𒁉𒍣𒁕transliteratedcuneiform na₄.šem-bi-zi-da, a transliteration; the original signs are in Wiktionary‘kohl’
  2. Akkadianc. 2500–100 BCEguḫlumWiktionary, English alcoholytransliteratedcuneiform guḫlum, a transliteration; the original signs are in Wiktionary
  3. Aramaicc. 1000 BCE–700 CEכוחלאWiktionary, English alcoholykuḥlā‘stibnite, antimony’
  4. Arabicc. 500–presentكُحْلWiktionary, English alcoholykuḥl‘antimony’
  5. Andalusian Arabicc. 800–1600كُحُولWiktionary, English alcoholykuḥūl
  6. Medieval LatinmodernalcoholWiktionary, English alcoholy
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500alcofolWiktionary, English alcoholy
  8. English1500–presentalcoholWiktionary, English alcoholy
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1936alcoholyWiktionary, English alcoholy. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1936, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, St. Louis: “This distilled dry gin is smooth and potent, without…”

Linked words

through Arabic كُحْل ‘antimony’

kohl, 19 more

through English alcohol

glycol, thiol, 18 more

Today it means

adj Resembling or characteristic of alcohol.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “alcoholy”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Akkadian 𒎎𒋆𒁉𒍣𒁕. 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 / Sumerian na₄.šem-bi-zi-da / alcoholy

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