English
deponent
Deponent comes from Latin dēpōnēns ‘laying aside’, from pōnō ‘put, place’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tḱey- ‘to cultivate’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tḱey-1‘to cultivate’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tḱinéti1reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sinō1‘to put in place’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pozinō1reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpōnō1‘put, place’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēpōnō1‘lay aside’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēpōnēns1‘laying aside’present active participle of dēpōnō
- Englishearliest quotation 1898deponent1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English deponent
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1898, R. S. Craig, Adam Laing: “The said William Aitken, being of new solemnly sworn,…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tḱey-Wiktionary, English deponent‘to cultivate’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tḱinétiWiktionary, English deponentreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sinōWiktionary, English deponent‘to put in place’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pozinōWiktionary, English deponentreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpōnōWiktionary, English deponent‘put, place’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēpōnōWiktionary, English deponent‘lay aside’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēpōnēnsWiktionary, English deponent‘laying aside’present active participle of dēpōnō
- Englishearliest quotation 1898deponentWiktionary, English deponent. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1898, R. S. Craig, Adam Laing: “The said William Aitken, being of new solemnly sworn,…”
The story
The name comes from the idea that such verbs were originally reflexive and then later "laid aside" their passive meanings.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *tḱey- ‘to cultivate’
suppose, homeless, compound, impose, hamlet, bohemian, homely, hame, 47 more
through Proto-Indo-European *tḱinéti
apposite, prepositional, 36 more
through Proto-Italic *sinō ‘to put in place’
site, situation, composition, posture, situate, supposition, positivism, preposition, compostela, situs, 38 more
through Proto-Italic *pozinō
opposition, proposition, exposition, disposition, compost, deposition, imposition, suppository, compositor, presupposition, impost, 23 more
through Latin pōnō ‘put, place’
post, position, positive, purpose, opposite, propose, expose, dispose, opponent, compose, repository, posit, proponent, expound, exponent, presuppose, pone, 53 more
through Latin dēpōnō ‘lay aside’
Today it means
adj Having an active meaning, but conjugating as though it were being used with a different voice (such as the passive).
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “deponent”. 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 *tḱey- / deponent