English
coterminousness
Coterminousness comes from Latin conterminus ‘adjoining, neighboring, having a common border’, from terminus ‘a boundary, limit, end’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *térmn̥.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*térmn̥1‘boundary, end’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*termn̥1‘boundary stone’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*term(e)nos1‘boundary stone’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEterminus1‘a boundary, limit, end’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconterminus1‘adjoining, neighboring, having a common border’
- English1500–presentcoterminous1
- Englishtodaycoterminousness1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English coterminousness
Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*térmn̥Wiktionary, English coterminousness‘boundary, end’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*termn̥Wiktionary, English coterminousness‘boundary stone’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*term(e)nosWiktionary, English coterminousness‘boundary stone’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEterminusWiktionary, English coterminousness‘a boundary, limit, end’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconterminusWiktionary, English coterminousness‘adjoining, neighboring, having a common border’
- English1500–presentcoterminousWiktionary, English coterminousness
- EnglishtodaycoterminousnessWiktionary, English coterminousness
A compound of coterminous + -ness
Proto-Indo-European *térmn̥ ‘boundary, end’
Proto-Italic *termn̥ ‘boundary stone’
Proto-Italic *term(e)nos ‘boundary stone’
Latin terminus ‘border, end’
Latin conterminus ‘adjoining, neighboring, having a common border’
English coterminous
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ter- ‘tender, weak’
thrill, intrigue, treachery, thro, inextricable, 24 more
through Proto-Indo-European *térmn̥ ‘boundary, end’
through Proto-Italic *termn̥ ‘boundary stone’
extermination, determinate, 14 more
through Proto-Italic *term(e)nos ‘boundary stone’
terminal, determination, termination, terminate, terminator, terminus, determinism, interminable, 19 more
through Latin terminus ‘a boundary, limit, end’
Today it means
noun The state or quality of being coterminous.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “coterminousness”. 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 *térmn̥ / coterminousness