Etymograph

English

pendeloque

Pendeloque comes from French pendeloque ‘hanging object’, from Old French pendeloche ‘penis’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pend- ‘to stretch’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)pend-1‘to stretch’root named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400pendeloche1‘penis’
  3. Frenchc. 1600–presentpendeloque1‘hanging object’
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1850pendeloque1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English pendeloque
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1850, an ex-hanger on of royalty: “[M]y eye was caught by the flashing of the…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)pend-Wiktionary, English pendeloque‘to stretch’root named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400pendelocheWiktionary, English pendeloque‘penis’
  3. Frenchc. 1600–presentpendeloqueWiktionary, English pendeloque‘hanging object’
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1850pendeloqueWiktionary, English pendeloque. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1850, an ex-hanger on of royalty: “[M]y eye was caught by the flashing of the…”

The story

Borrowed from French pendeloque (‘hanging object; religious medallion, probably in pendant form; jewel hanging from an earring; small crystal piece, especially one hanging from a chandelier’) [and other forms], from Old French pendeloche (‘penis’) (apparently a hapax legomenon), from pendeler (‘to dangle’) + -oche (suffix forming nouns from verbs), with the ending possibly influenced by breloque (‘charm for a bracelet’). Pendeler is derived from pendre (‘to hang’) + -eler (frequentative suffix); and pendre from Latin pendere, the present active infinitive of pendeō (‘to hang (down)’), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pend- (‘to stretch’).

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *(s)pend- ‘to stretch’

spend, expensive, pound, compensation, span, expense, pension, depend, compensate, expenditure, appendix, poise, penthouse, pendant, perpendicular, peso, pansy, compendium, dispensation, expend, recompense, pensive, piso, append, 17 more

Today it means

noun A drop-shaped diamond or other gem used as a pendant; also, a piece of jewellery in pendant form.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “pendeloque”. 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 *(s)pend- / pendeloque

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