Etymograph

English

elastic

Elastic comes from Ancient Greek ἐλᾰστός, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₁elh₂-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁elh₂-1reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁l̥h₂-tós1reconstructed
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐλᾰστός1elăstós
  4. New Latinmodernelasticus1
  5. Frenchc. 1600–presentélastique1
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1820elastic1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English elastic
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1820, Encyclopaedia Britannica; Or A Dictionar, Sciences: “In trumpets for assisting the hearing, all reverbation of…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁elh₂-Wiktionary, English elasticreconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁l̥h₂-tósWiktionary, English elasticreconstructed
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐλᾰστόςWiktionary, English elasticelăstós
  4. New LatinmodernelasticusWiktionary, English elastic
  5. Frenchc. 1600–presentélastiqueWiktionary, English elastic
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1820elasticWiktionary, English elastic. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1820, Encyclopaedia Britannica; Or A Dictionar, Sciences: “In trumpets for assisting the hearing, all reverbation of…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₁elh₂-

elt, 3 more

Today it means

adj Capable of stretching; particularly, capable of stretching so as to return to an original shape or size when force is released.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “elastic”. 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 *h₁elh₂- / elastic

Shirt and support for this word