Etymograph

English

obtrectation

Obtrectation comes from Latin obtrectātiō ‘disparagement’, from tractō ‘to tug, drag or haul’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰregʰ-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰregʰ-1‘to run, to drag, to pull’uncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrahō1‘to drag, pull’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtractō1‘to tug, drag or haul’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEobtrectō2‘to disparage, underrate, decry’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEobtrectātiō3‘disparagement’
  6. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600obtrectacion3
  7. Englishtodayobtrectation3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin obtrecto
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin obtrectatio
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English obtrectation

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰregʰ-Wiktionary, Latin obtrecto‘to run, to drag, to pull’uncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrahōWiktionary, Latin obtrecto‘to drag, pull’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtractōWiktionary, Latin obtrecto‘to tug, drag or haul’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEobtrectōWiktionary, Latin obtrectatio‘to disparage, underrate, decry’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEobtrectātiōWiktionary, English obtrectation‘disparagement’
  6. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600obtrectacionWiktionary, English obtrectation
  7. EnglishtodayobtrectationWiktionary, English obtrectation

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *dʰregʰ- ‘to run, to drag, to pull’

draw, train, draft, drag, retreat, distraction, extraction, draught, contraction, abstraction, subtraction, abstractly, 47 more

through Latin trahō ‘to drag, pull’

contract, treat, portrait, attractive, abstract, extract, trait, tractor, distract, attraction, tram, traction, retract, trattoria, tractable, 31 more

through Latin tractō ‘to tug, drag or haul’

tract, entreat, 9 more

Today it means

noun Disparagement, the belittling of someone or something; slander.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “obtrectation”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin obtrecto, Latin obtrectatio. 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 *dʰregʰ- / obtrectation

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