English
embolite
Embolite comes from Latin embolus ‘piston’, from Ancient Greek ἔμβολος ‘peg, wedge, stopper’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH- ‘to hit by throwing’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷelH-1‘to hit by throwing’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷl̥-ne-h₁-1reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*gʷəlnō1reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβάλλω2‘to throw’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐμβάλλω3‘to throw in’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἔμβολος4émbolos‘peg, wedge, stopper’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEembolus4‘piston’
- Englishtodayembolite4
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλω
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ἐμβάλλω
- 3 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ἔμβολος
- 4 Wiktionary, English embolite
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷelH-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλω‘to hit by throwing’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷl̥-ne-h₁-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλωreconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*gʷəlnōWiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλωreconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβάλλωWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἐμβάλλω‘to throw’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐμβάλλωWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἔμβολος‘to throw in’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἔμβολοςWiktionary, English emboliteémbolos‘peg, wedge, stopper’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEembolusWiktionary, English embolite‘piston’
- EnglishtodayemboliteWiktionary, English embolite
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH- ‘to hit by throwing’
ball, quail, quill, quell, obelisk, pul, 64 more
through Proto-Hellenic *gʷəlnō
ballistic, symbolic, ballista, symbolist, 35 more
through Ancient Greek βάλλω ‘to throw’
problem, devil, symbol, metabolic, parable, hyperbolic, parabolic, anabolic, metabolize, hyperbola, 34 more
through Ancient Greek ἐμβάλλω ‘to throw in’
Today it means
noun A mineral consisting of silver chloride and silver bromide; a variety of bromian chlorargyrite.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “embolite”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek βάλλω, Ancient Greek ἐμβάλλω, Ancient Greek ἔμβολος. 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 *gʷelH- / embolite