English
allophone
Allophone comes from Ancient Greek ᾰ̓́λλος ‘the other, all others, all besides, the rest’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-1‘beyond, other’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂élyos1‘other, another’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*ál͏̌l͏̌os1‘other, another’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEᾰ̓́λλος1ắllos‘the other, all others, all besides, the rest’
- Englishearliest quotation 2003allophone1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English allophone
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2003, Mikhail Sergeevich Andronov, A Comparative Grammar of the Dravidian Languages: “In the former the bilabial phone forms an allophone…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-Wiktionary, English allophone‘beyond, other’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂élyosWiktionary, English allophone‘other, another’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*ál͏̌l͏̌osWiktionary, English allophone‘other, another’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEᾰ̓́λλοςWiktionary, English allophoneắllos‘the other, all others, all besides, the rest’
- Englishearliest quotation 2003allophoneWiktionary, English allophone. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2003, Mikhail Sergeevich Andronov, A Comparative Grammar of the Dravidian Languages: “In the former the bilabial phone forms an allophone…”
A compound of allo- ‘different’ + -phone
Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘beyond, other’
Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos ‘other, another’
Proto-Hellenic *áľľos
Ancient Greek ἄλλος ‘other’
English allo-
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘beyond, other’
as, all, old, adult, el, ultimate, element, ultra, elder, alter, ellen, outrage, ou, altitude, alumni, qualification, altar, adolescent, alt, abolish, alias, alto, alpine, alum, proletariat, retaliate, auld, ulterior, alienation, alienate, alp, alimony, inalienable, coalesce, exalt, foetal, althea, aad, eld, altimeter, 57 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos ‘other, another’
else, alien, alternate, adultery, alibi, altercation, altruism, parallax, alternation, 31 more
Today it means
noun Any of two or more alternative pronunciations for a phoneme.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “allophone”. 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 *h₂el- / allophone