Etymograph

English

center

Center comes from Ancient Greek κέντρον ‘something with a sharp point: point, spike, spur’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *ḱéntrom.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱéntrom1‘pointed tool’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*kéntron1reconstructed
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκέντρον1kéntron‘something with a sharp point: point’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcentrum1
  5. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600centre1
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500center1
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1610–1611center1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English center
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1610–1611, William Shakespeare, The Winters Tale: “Leo. No: if I mistake In those Foundations which…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱéntromWiktionary, English center‘pointed tool’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*kéntronWiktionary, English centerreconstructed
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκέντρονWiktionary, English centerkéntron‘something with a sharp point: point’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcentrumWiktionary, English center
  5. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600centreWiktionary, English center
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500centerWiktionary, English center
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1610–1611centerWiktionary, English center. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1610–1611, William Shakespeare, The Winters Tale: “Leo. No: if I mistake In those Foundations which…”

Linked words

through Ancient Greek κέντρον ‘something with a sharp point: point, spike, spur’

eccentric, kendra, centric, alcantara, centrale, cento, 14 more

through Latin centrum

central, concentric, centrum, 1 more

through Middle English center

centre

Today it means

noun The point in the interior of a circle that is equidistant from all points on the circumference.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “center”. 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 *ḱéntrom / center

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