English
barite
Barite comes from Ancient Greek βαρύτης ‘heaviness’, from βαρύς ‘heavy’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷreh₂-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷreh₂-1‘heavy’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷréh₂us2‘heavy’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*gʷarus2‘heavy’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβαρύς3‘heavy’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβαρύτης3barútēs‘heaviness’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentbarote3
- Englishtodaybarite3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *gʷréh₂us
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek βαρύς
- 3 Wiktionary, English barite
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷreh₂-Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *gʷréh₂us‘heavy’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷréh₂usWiktionary, Ancient Greek βαρύς‘heavy’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*gʷarusWiktionary, Ancient Greek βαρύς‘heavy’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβαρύςWiktionary, English barite‘heavy’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβαρύτηςWiktionary, English baritebarútēs‘heaviness’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentbaroteWiktionary, English barite
- EnglishtodaybariteWiktionary, English barite
Equivalent to bar- + -ite
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *gʷreh₂- ‘heavy’
bar, guru, brigadier, aggravation, gravitate, brio, brigand, 17 more
through Proto-Indo-European *gʷréh₂us ‘heavy’
grave, brutal, gravity, grief, brute, grieve, grievous, grievance, aggravate, brut, gravitation, gravitas, 15 more
through Ancient Greek βαρύς ‘heavy’
Today it means
noun A mineral, barium sulphate, with the chemical formula BaSO₄.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “barite”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Indo-European *gʷréh₂us, Ancient Greek βαρύς. 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 *gʷreh₂- / barite