Etymograph

English

comatose

Comatose may come from French comateux.

  1. Frenchc. 1600–presentcomateux1uncertain
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1988comatose1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English comatose
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1988, Vicki Lansky: “Weary of big Sunday dinners that leave you feeling…”.

Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Frenchc. 1600–presentcomateuxWiktionary, English comatoseuncertain
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1988comatoseWiktionary, English comatose. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1988, Vicki Lansky: “Weary of big Sunday dinners that leave you feeling…”

Formed from coma + -ose ‘full of’

Ancient Greek κῶμα ‘deep sleep’

English coma

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *ḱemh₂- ‘to be tired’

shanti, 4 more

through Ancient Greek θρίξ ‘hair’

tress, 11 more

through Ancient Greek κόμη ‘hair of the head’

comet, 3 more

Today it means

adj In a coma: unconscious.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “comatose”. 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 / French comateux / comatose

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