Etymograph

English

gegenion

Gegenion comes from German gegen ‘against’, from Proto-Germanic *gagin ‘towards, in the direction of’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰengʰ- ‘to walk, step’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰengʰ-1‘to walk, step’uncertain
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*ganganą2‘to go, walk, step’uncertain
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gagin3‘towards, in the direction of’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*gagin3reconstructed
  5. Old High Germanc. 750–1050gagan3‘against’
  6. Middle High Germanc. 1050–1350gegen3‘against’
  7. Germanc. 1650–presentgegen4‘against’
  8. Englishtodaygegenion4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *ganganą
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *gagin, which cites Orel
  3. 3 Wiktionary, German gegen
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English gegenion

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰengʰ-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *ganganą‘to walk, step’uncertain
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*ganganąWiktionary, Proto-Germanic *gagin, which cites Orel‘to go, walk, step’uncertain
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gaginWiktionary, German gegen‘towards, in the direction of’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*gaginWiktionary, German gegenreconstructed
  5. Old High Germanc. 750–1050gaganWiktionary, German gegen‘against’
  6. Middle High Germanc. 1050–1350gegenWiktionary, German gegen‘against’
  7. Germanc. 1650–presentgegenWiktionary, English gegenion‘against’
  8. EnglishtodaygegenionWiktionary, English gegenion

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰengʰ- ‘to walk, step’

jay, camino, doppelganger, ging, 10 more

through Proto-Germanic *ganganą ‘to go, walk, step’

gang, gong, gan, 6 more

Today it means

noun A counterion: an ion of opposite charge to another in an electrochemical or ion transport system.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “gegenion”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Germanic *ganganą, Proto-Germanic *gagin, German gegen. 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 *ǵʰengʰ- / gegenion

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