Etymograph

English

enumerate

Enumerate comes from Latin enumerātus ‘enumerated’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *nem-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*nem-1next step skipped: Latin ēnumerō
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEenumerātus1‘enumerated’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1646enumerate1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English enumerate
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1646, George Gillespie: “So many scandals as are enumerate in the Ordinance.”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*nem-Wiktionary, English enumeratenext step skipped: Latin ēnumerō
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEenumerātusWiktionary, English enumerate‘enumerated’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1646enumerateWiktionary, English enumerate. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1646, George Gillespie: “So many scandals as are enumerate in the Ordinance.”

first attested First attested in 1600–1650 (as stated in Wiktionary’s etymology)

The story

First attested in 1600–1650; borrowed from Latin enumerātus, the perfect passive participle of enumerō, see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix).

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *nem-

number, numerous, nomadic, numb, nomad, nim, nome, innumerable, numeric, naam, luma, numeral, numeracy, numero, numismatics, numerator, 25 more

Today it means

verb To specify each member of a sequence individually in incrementing order.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “enumerate”. 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 *nem- / enumerate

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