English
platen
Platen comes from French platine ‘platter’, from plat ‘flat’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pleth₂-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pleth₂-1‘flat’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pléth₂us1‘flat, broad’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*plətús1‘wide, broad’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπλατύς1platús‘broad, flat’
- Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*plattus1‘flattened’reconstructed
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400plat1‘flat’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600plat1‘flat’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentplat2‘flat’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentplatine2‘platter’
- Englishearliest quotation 2010platen2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, French plat
- 2 Wiktionary, English platen
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2010, Andrea Levy, The Long Song: “And the form is inked, the paper is applied,…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pleth₂-Wiktionary, French plat‘flat’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pléth₂usWiktionary, French plat‘flat, broad’reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*plətúsWiktionary, French plat‘wide, broad’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπλατύςWiktionary, French platplatús‘broad, flat’
- Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*plattusWiktionary, French plat‘flattened’reconstructed
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400platWiktionary, French plat‘flat’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600platWiktionary, French plat‘flat’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentplatWiktionary, English platen‘flat’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentplatineWiktionary, English platen‘platter’
- Englishearliest quotation 2010platenWiktionary, English platen. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2010, Andrea Levy, The Long Song: “And the form is inked, the paper is applied,…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *pleth₂- ‘flat’
flat, piazza, collateral, lateral, plantain, flan, 14 more
through Proto-Hellenic *plətús ‘wide, broad’
through Ancient Greek πλατύς ‘broad, flat’
through Vulgar Latin *plattus ‘flattened’
through Old French plat ‘flat’
through French plat ‘flat’
Today it means
noun The part of a printing press which presses the paper against the type and by which the impression is made.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “platen”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for French plat. 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 *pleth₂- / platen