Etymograph

English

desiccant

Desiccant comes from Latin dēsiccans, from siccō ‘dry up’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sek-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sek-1‘to dry up’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*siskus1‘dry’uncertain
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*siskʷos1uncertain
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsiccus2‘dry’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsiccō3‘dry up’next step skipped: Latin dēsiccō
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēsiccans3
  7. Englishtodaydesiccant3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin siccus
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin sicco
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English desiccant

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sek-Wiktionary, Latin siccus‘to dry up’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*siskusWiktionary, Latin siccus‘dry’uncertain
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*siskʷosWiktionary, Latin siccusuncertain
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsiccusWiktionary, Latin sicco‘dry’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsiccōWiktionary, English desiccant‘dry up’next step skipped: Latin dēsiccō
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēsiccansWiktionary, English desiccant
  7. EnglishtodaydesiccantWiktionary, English desiccant

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *sek- ‘to dry up’

saw, sex, risk, section, ship, sign, sexual, seal, segment, insect, sawyer, scarlet, sax, het, shingle, dissect, sickle, scythe, seg, sedge, sich, sigil, sain, brassica, 64 more

through Latin siccus ‘dry’

sack, 11 more

Today it means

noun A substance (such as calcium oxide or silica gel) that is used as a drying agent because of its high affinity for water.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “desiccant”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin siccus, Latin sicco. 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 *sek- / desiccant

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