English
eidos
Eidos comes from Ancient Greek εἶδος ‘species’, from Proto-Indo-European *wéydos ‘seeing, image’, and ultimately from *weyd- ‘to see’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weyd-1‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wéydos1‘seeing, image’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*wéidos1reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεἶδος2eîdos‘species’
- Englishtodayeidos2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek εἶδος
- 2 Wiktionary, English eidos
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weyd-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek εἶδος‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wéydosWiktionary, Ancient Greek εἶδος‘seeing, image’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*wéidosWiktionary, Ancient Greek εἶδοςreconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεἶδοςWiktionary, English eidoseîdos‘species’
- EnglishtodayeidosWiktionary, English eidos
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *weyd- ‘to see’
story, guy, video, review, visit, idea, evidence, provide, advice, interview, vision, witness, historic, guide, visa, advise, invisible, wisdom, wit, wizard, historian, visibility, evident, vista, wisely, witty, revise, guise, prudent, envious, jurisprudence, unwise, prudence, revue, improvise, avis, purview, twit, druid, voyeur, 103 more
through Proto-Indo-European *wéydos ‘seeing, image’
through Proto-Hellenic *wéidos
through Ancient Greek εἶδος ‘species’
idol, steroid, tabloid, hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, parathyroid, idyll, trapezoid, thyroxine, colloid, hyoid, thyroiditis, sigmoid, 49 more
Today it means
noun Form; essence; type; species.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “eidos”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Ancient Greek εἶδος. 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 *weyd- / eidos