English
alligate
Alligate comes from Latin alligatus ‘tied, bound’, from alligo ‘to bind’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *leyǵ-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*leyǵ-1‘to bind’uncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEligo2‘to bind’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEalligo2‘to bind’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEalligatus2‘tied, bound’past participle of alligo
- Englishearliest quotation a. 1677alligate2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin ligo
- 2 Wiktionary, English alligate
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: a. 1677, Matthew Hale, The Primitive Origination of Mankind: “Instincts alligated to their nature.”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*leyǵ-Wiktionary, Latin ligo‘to bind’uncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEligoWiktionary, English alligate‘to bind’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEalligoWiktionary, English alligate‘to bind’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEalligatusWiktionary, English alligate‘tied, bound’past participle of alligo
- Englishearliest quotation a. 1677alligateWiktionary, English alligate. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: a. 1677, Matthew Hale, The Primitive Origination of Mankind: “Instincts alligated to their nature.”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *leyǵ- ‘to bind’
through Latin ligo ‘to bind’
league, religious, religion, liable, liaison, lien, ligament, ligand, religiosity, liaise, ligature, legato, ligation, obligate, 12 more
through Latin alligo ‘to bind’
Today it means
verb To bind or tie; to unite.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “alligate”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin ligo. 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 *leyǵ- / alligate