Etymograph

English

desuete

Desuete may come from Latin dēsuētus ‘unused’, from dēsuēscō ‘to disuse’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *swe-dʰh₁-sḱ-e-ti.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*swe-dʰh₁-sḱ-e-ti1uncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsuēscō2‘to make use of’uncertain
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēsuēscō2‘to disuse’uncertain
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēsuētus2‘unused’uncertainpast participle of dēsuēscō
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1819desuete2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin suesco
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English desuete
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1819, The Practical Abridgement of the Laws of: “Every act that has not been repealed or expired…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*swe-dʰh₁-sḱ-e-tiWiktionary, Latin suescouncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsuēscōWiktionary, English desuete‘to make use of’uncertain
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēsuēscōWiktionary, English desuete‘to disuse’uncertain
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdēsuētusWiktionary, English desuete‘unused’uncertainpast participle of dēsuēscō
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1819desueteWiktionary, English desuete. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1819, The Practical Abridgement of the Laws of: “Every act that has not been repealed or expired…”

Linked words

through Latin suēscō ‘to make use of’

custom, costume, 6 more

Today it means

adj Disused; out of use.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “desuete”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin suesco. 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 *swe-dʰh₁-sḱ-e-ti / desuete

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