English
concussion
Concussion comes from Latin concussiō ‘shaking’, from concutiō ‘shake violently’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kuh₁t-yé-ti.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kuh₁t-yé-ti1uncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquatiō2‘shake, hit’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconcutiō2‘shake violently’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconcussiō3‘shaking’
- Englishearliest quotation 1595concussion3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin quatio, which cites LIV
- 2 Wiktionary, Latin concussio
- 3 Wiktionary, English concussion
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1595, Samuel Daniel, (please specify the folio number): “Then Concussion, Rapine, Pillories, / Their Catalogue of Accusations…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kuh₁t-yé-tiWiktionary, Latin quatio, which cites LIVuncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquatiōWiktionary, Latin concussio‘shake, hit’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconcutiōWiktionary, Latin concussio‘shake violently’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconcussiōWiktionary, English concussion‘shaking’
- Englishearliest quotation 1595concussionWiktionary, English concussion. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1595, Samuel Daniel, (please specify the folio number): “Then Concussion, Rapine, Pillories, / Their Catalogue of Accusations…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *(s)kuh₁t-yé-ti
pasta, paste, pastiche, patisserie, 27 more
through Latin quatiō ‘shake, hit’
cashier, quash, fracas, zouk, casco, casse, repercussion, 17 more
Today it means
noun A violent collision or shock.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “concussion”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin quatio, Latin concussio. 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 *(s)kuh₁t-yé-ti / concussion