English
erg
Erg comes from Ancient Greek ἔργον ‘work’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *werǵ- ‘to make’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*werǵ-1‘to make’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wérǵom2‘work’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*wérgon2‘work’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἔργον3érgon‘work’
- Englishtodayerg3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *wérǵom
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ἔργον
- 3 Wiktionary, English erg
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*werǵ-Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *wérǵom‘to make’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wérǵomWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἔργον‘work’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*wérgonWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἔργον‘work’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἔργονWiktionary, English ergérgon‘work’
- EnglishtodayergWiktionary, English erg
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *werǵ- ‘to make’
working, wright, organic, organ, boulevard, wrought, orgasm, liturgy, bulwark, metallurgy, irk, irksome, wark, 21 more
through Proto-Indo-European *wérǵom ‘work’
through Ancient Greek ἔργον ‘work’
Another origin of erg
- Arabicc. 500–presentعِرْقʕirq‘plant stem, leaf stem’
- Frenchc. 1600–presenterg
- Englishtodayerg
Today it means
noun A unit of work or energy, being the amount of work done by a force of one dyne applied through a distance of one centimeter. Equal to 10⁻⁷ joules.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “erg”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Indo-European *wérǵom, Ancient Greek ἔργον. 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 *werǵ- / erg