English
eunuch
Eunuch comes from Latin eunūchus, and goes back to Ancient Greek εὐνοῦχος ‘castrated person, eunuch’.
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεὐνοῦχος1eunoûkhos‘castrated person, eunuch’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEeunūchus1
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500eunuk1‘a eunuch, especially one working as a guard at a harem’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588eunuch1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English eunuch
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1587–1588, Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […]: “He ſhall be made a chaſte and luſtleſſe Eunuch,…”.
Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.
Lineage
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEεὐνοῦχοςWiktionary, English eunucheunoûkhos‘castrated person, eunuch’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEeunūchusWiktionary, English eunuch
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500eunukWiktionary, English eunuch‘a eunuch, especially one working as a guard at a harem’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588eunuchWiktionary, English eunuch. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1587–1588, Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […]: “He ſhall be made a chaſte and luſtleſſe Eunuch,…”
The story
Originally probably used to refer to a bed chamber attendant.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ- ‘to transport’
way, always, via, vehicle, wave, reveal, wagon, vein, vogue, veil, wedge, wag, venous, vex, vena, wey, invective, waw, wain, velar, 40 more
through Proto-Indo-European *wéǵʰeti ‘to be transporting’
Today it means
noun A castrated man.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “eunuch”. 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 / Ancient Greek εὐνοῦχος / eunuch