Etymograph

English

combination

Combination comes from Middle English combinacioun, from Old French combination, from Late Latin combīnātiō, from combīnō ‘to combine’, from bīnī ‘two each’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEbīnus1‘two each’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcombīnō2‘to combine, unite’
  3. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEcombīnātiō1
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400combination1
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500combinacioun1
  6. Englishtodaycombination1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English combination
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin combinatio

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEbīnusWiktionary, English combination‘two each’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcombīnōWiktionary, Latin combinatio‘to combine, unite’
  3. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEcombīnātiōWiktionary, English combination
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400combinationWiktionary, English combination
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500combinaciounWiktionary, English combination
  6. EnglishtodaycombinationWiktionary, English combination

Explore everything descended from bīnus →

No ads, ever. This is how the app stays alive.

Become a founding member, $29 onceWear this word, $32Support the app

Today it means

noun The act of combining, the state of being combined or the result of combining.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “combination”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin combinatio. 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 / Latin bīnus / combination