English
dirigible
Dirigible comes from French dirigeable ‘dirigible, blimp’, from ballon ‘steerable balloon’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- ‘to straighten’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₃reǵ-1‘to straighten’root named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
- Italianc. 1300–presentbalone2
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600ballon3‘large ball’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentballon1‘steerable balloon’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentdirigeable1‘dirigible, blimp’
- Englishearliest quotation 1923dirigible1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English dirigible
- 2 Wiktionary, Middle French ballon
- 3 Wiktionary, French ballon
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1923, Ernest Bramah pseudonym; Ernest Brammah , (please specify the page): “Do you know, Louis, of any great secret military…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₃reǵ-Wiktionary, English dirigible‘to straighten’root named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
- Italianc. 1300–presentbaloneWiktionary, Middle French ballon
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600ballonWiktionary, French ballon‘large ball’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentballonWiktionary, English dirigible‘steerable balloon’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentdirigeableWiktionary, English dirigible‘dirigible, blimp’
- Englishearliest quotation 1923dirigibleWiktionary, English dirigible. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1923, Ernest Bramah pseudonym; Ernest Brammah , (please specify the page): “Do you know, Louis, of any great secret military…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- ‘to straighten’
real, right, source, regular, address, royal, director, region, correct, dress, rule, rich, direction, direct, rank, arrangement, roy, radar, regime, arrange, rack, ana, rex, rogue, regulate, resurrection, interrogation, raj, erect, regent, rake, rector, regal, regency, insurrection, rectify, anorexia, rani, rectum, rajah, 105 more
through Middle French ballon ‘large ball’
through French ballon ‘steerable balloon’
Today it means
noun A self-propelled airship that can be steered.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “dirigible”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Middle French ballon, French ballon. 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 *h₃reǵ- / dirigible