English
indicator
Indicator comes from Late Latin indicātor ‘one who points out’, from Latin dīcō ‘to say, talk, speak, utter, mention’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- ‘to point out, to show’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*deyḱ-1‘to point out, to show’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*déyḱeti1‘to be pointing out’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*deikō1‘to show, indicate’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīcō1‘to say, talk, speak, utter, mention’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEindex1‘a pointer, indicator’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEindicō2‘point out’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEindicātor2‘one who points out’
- Englishearliest quotation 1954indicator2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin indico
- 2 Wiktionary, English indicator
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1954, Train Arrival Indicators at Euston: “The visual indicators are a decided improvement, and have…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*deyḱ-Wiktionary, Latin indico‘to point out, to show’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*déyḱetiWiktionary, Latin indico‘to be pointing out’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*deikōWiktionary, Latin indico‘to show, indicate’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdīcōWiktionary, Latin indico‘to say, talk, speak, utter, mention’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEindexWiktionary, Latin indico‘a pointer, indicator’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEindicōWiktionary, English indicator‘point out’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEindicātorWiktionary, English indicator‘one who points out’
- Englishearliest quotation 1954indicatorWiktionary, English indicator. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1954, Train Arrival Indicators at Euston: “The visual indicators are a decided improvement, and have…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- ‘to point out, to show’
teach, toe, token, digit, syndicate, tache, syndicalism, 35 more
through Proto-Italic *deikō ‘to show, indicate’
contradictory, interdiction, 18 more
through Latin dīcō ‘to say, talk, speak, utter, mention’
dictionary, predict, preach, dedication, addict, contradiction, contradict, dictate, ditto, predicament, dedicate, dictator, ditty, diction, predicate, dictum, interdict, dict, 25 more
through Latin index ‘a pointer, indicator’
through Latin indicō ‘point out’
Today it means
noun A pointer or index that indicates something.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “indicator”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin indico. 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 *deyḱ- / indicator