Etymograph

English

permeable

Permeable comes from Latin permeābilis ‘passable’, from permeō ‘to pass through’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *mey-o-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mey-o-1reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*mejo-1reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmeō1‘to go along, pass or traverse’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpermeō2‘to pass through’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpermeābilis3‘passable’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500permeable3
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1948permeable3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin permeo
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin permeabilis
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English permeable
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1948, Publications of the National Bureau of S: “One hundred thirty-one small, highly permeable masonry wall specimens…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mey-o-Wiktionary, Latin permeoreconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*mejo-Wiktionary, Latin permeoreconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmeōWiktionary, Latin permeo‘to go along, pass or traverse’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpermeōWiktionary, Latin permeabilis‘to pass through’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpermeābilisWiktionary, English permeable‘passable’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500permeableWiktionary, English permeable
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1948permeableWiktionary, English permeable. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1948, Publications of the National Bureau of S: “One hundred thirty-one small, highly permeable masonry wall specimens…”

Linked words

through Latin meō ‘to go along, pass or traverse’

congee, 4 more

Today it means

adj Able to be permeated; absorbing or allowing the passage of fluids.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “permeable”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin permeo, Latin permeabilis. 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 *mey-o- / permeable

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