English
enteral
Enteral comes from Ancient Greek ἔντερον ‘intestine’, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁énteros ‘inside, within’, and ultimately from *h₁én ‘in’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁én1‘in’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁énteros1‘inside, within’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἔντερον2énteron‘intestine’
- Englishtodayenteral2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ἔντερον
- 2 Wiktionary, English enteral
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁énWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἔντερον‘in’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁énterosWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἔντερον‘inside, within’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἔντερονWiktionary, English enteralénteron‘intestine’
- EnglishtodayenteralWiktionary, English enteral
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₁én ‘in’
in, indigenous, internal, impulse, intimate, encounter, ensemble, incubation, incense, intern, intestine, endo, incubus, impel, incubate, agog, intimation, interregnum, censer, 31 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₁énteros ‘inside, within’
introduce, interior, entrance, intro, 14 more
through Ancient Greek ἔντερον ‘intestine’
Today it means
adj Of, pertaining to, within, or by way of the intestines; especially, the small intestine.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “enteral”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Ancient Greek ἔντερον. 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 *h₁én / enteral