Etymograph

English

electrize

Electrize comes from French électriser ‘to electrify’, from Latin ēlectrum ‘amber’, and ultimately from Ancient Greek ἤλεκτρον.

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἤλεκτρον1‘amber’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEēlectrum2‘amber’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEēlectricus3‘electric’
  4. Frenchc. 1600–presentélectrique4‘electric, electrical’
  5. Frenchc. 1600–presentélectriser5‘to electrify’
  6. Englishtodayelectrize5

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin electrum
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin electricus
  3. 3 Wiktionary, French électrique
  4. 4 Wiktionary, French électriser
  5. 5 Wiktionary, English electrize

Lineage

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἤλεκτρονWiktionary, Latin electrum‘amber’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEēlectrumWiktionary, Latin electricus‘amber’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEēlectricusWiktionary, French électrique‘electric’
  4. Frenchc. 1600–presentélectriqueWiktionary, French électriser‘electric, electrical’
  5. Frenchc. 1600–presentélectriserWiktionary, English electrize‘to electrify’
  6. EnglishtodayelectrizeWiktionary, English electrize

Every English word from Ancient Greek ἤλεκτρον

Today it means

verb Synonym of electrify

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “electrize”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin electrum, Latin electricus, French électrique, French électriser. 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 / Ancient Greek ἤλεκτρον / electrize

Shirt and support for this word