English
elliptical
Elliptical comes from Ancient Greek ἐλλειπτικός ‘defective’, from ἐλλείπω ‘I leave out, omit’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *leykʷ-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*leykʷ-1‘to leave behind’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEλείπω2‘to leave’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐλλείπω3elleípō‘I leave out, omit’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐλλειπτικός3elleiptikós‘defective’
- Englishearliest quotation 1876elliptical3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek λείπω
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ἐλλείπω
- 3 Wiktionary, English elliptical
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1876, Chapter XIX: “Having admitted that the projectile was describing an orbit…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*leykʷ-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek λείπω‘to leave behind’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEλείπωWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἐλλείπω‘to leave’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐλλείπωWiktionary, English ellipticalelleípō‘I leave out, omit’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐλλειπτικόςWiktionary, English ellipticalelleiptikós‘defective’
- Englishearliest quotation 1876ellipticalWiktionary, English elliptical. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1876, Chapter XIX: “Having admitted that the projectile was describing an orbit…”
Formed from elliptic + -al
Proto-Indo-European *leykʷ- ‘to leave behind’
Ancient Greek λείπω ‘to leave’
Ancient Greek ἐλλείπω ‘I leave out, omit’
Ancient Greek ἐλλειπτικός ‘defective’
English elliptic
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *leykʷ- ‘to leave behind’
loan, lend, delinquent, relinquish, relic, delinquency, 15 more
through Ancient Greek λείπω ‘to leave’
Today it means
adj In a shape of, or reminding of, an ellipse; oval.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “elliptical”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek λείπω, Ancient Greek ἐλλείπω. 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 *leykʷ- / elliptical