English
epithem
Epithem comes from Ancient Greek ἐπίθεμα ‘cover, lid, top’, from θέμα ‘that which is placed or laid down’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- ‘to do’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeh₁-1‘to do’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰéh₁mn̥2‘act of placement or doing’reconstructedderived within Proto-Indo-European
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEτῐ́θημῐ2‘to set, put, place’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEθέμα3‘that which is placed or laid down’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐπίθεμα4epíthema‘cover, lid, top’
- Englishtodayepithem4
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *dʰéh₁mn̥
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek θέμα
- 3 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ἐπίθεμα
- 4 Wiktionary, English epithem
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeh₁-Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *dʰéh₁mn̥‘to do’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰéh₁mn̥Wiktionary, Ancient Greek θέμα‘act of placement or doing’reconstructedderived within Proto-Indo-European
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEτῐ́θημῐWiktionary, Ancient Greek θέμα‘to set, put, place’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEθέμαWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἐπίθεμα‘that which is placed or laid down’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἐπίθεμαWiktionary, English epithemepíthema‘cover, lid, top’
- EnglishtodayepithemWiktionary, English epithem
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- ‘to do’
do, fact, deal, hot, fair, defense, fan, fashion, feature, mid, benefit, defence, custom, sufficient, treasury, treasure, ethnic, defendant, feast, theme, ethical, doom, tick, deed, dis, aesthetic, synthetic, theology, synthesis, auditorium, spade, ethic, feral, auditor, fanatic, atheist, familial, medial, forfeit, demi, 125 more
through Ancient Greek τῐ́θημῐ ‘to set, put, place’
through Ancient Greek θέμα ‘that which is placed or laid down’
Today it means
noun Any external topical application to the body, except ointments and plasters; a poultice, lotion, etc.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “epithem”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Indo-European *dʰéh₁mn̥, Ancient Greek θέμα, Ancient Greek ἐπίθεμα. 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 *dʰeh₁- / epithem