English
dimension
Dimension comes from Latin dīmēnsiō ‘measuring (out)’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *meh₁-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*meh₁-1‘to measure’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*mētis1reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmētior1‘to measure or estimate’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīmētior1‘to measure (out or off)’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīmēnsiō1‘measuring (out)’
- Englishearliest quotation 1911dimension1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English dimension
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1911, Walter Winston Kenilworth, Thoughts on Things Psychics: “Nameless and formless the Spirit within shines forth, unconditioned…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*meh₁-Wiktionary, English dimension‘to measure’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*mētisWiktionary, English dimensionreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmētiorWiktionary, English dimension‘to measure or estimate’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīmētiorWiktionary, English dimension‘to measure (out or off)’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīmēnsiōWiktionary, English dimension‘measuring (out)’
- Englishearliest quotation 1911dimensionWiktionary, English dimension. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1911, Walter Winston Kenilworth, Thoughts on Things Psychics: “Nameless and formless the Spirit within shines forth, unconditioned…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *meh₁- ‘to measure’
month, moon, moral, meal, sunny, meter, moody, metric, metre, meta, menstrual, asymmetry, madder, metrology, mete, metis, firman, metra, moodiness, menses, 64 more
through Proto-Italic *mētis
through Latin mētior ‘to measure or estimate’
Today it means
noun A single aspect of a given thing.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “dimension”. 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 *meh₁- / dimension