Etymograph

English

point

Point comes from Old French point ‘dot’, from Latin pūnctum ‘a hole punched in; a point’, from pungō ‘to prick’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pewǵ- ‘to prick, punch’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pewǵ-1‘to prick, punch’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pungō1‘to prick, sting’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpungō1‘to prick; to puncture’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpūnctum1‘point; puncture’
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400point1‘dot’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500poynt1‘small hole’
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588point1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English point
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1587–1588, Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […]: “Leaue words & let them feele your lances pointes”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pewǵ-Wiktionary, English point‘to prick, punch’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pungōWiktionary, English point‘to prick, sting’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpungōWiktionary, English point‘to prick; to puncture’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpūnctumWiktionary, English point‘point; puncture’
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400pointWiktionary, English point‘dot’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500poyntWiktionary, English point‘small hole’
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588pointWiktionary, English point. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1587–1588, Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […]: “Leaue words & let them feele your lances pointes”

The story

From Middle English poynt, from Old French point m (‘dot; minute amount’), from Latin pūnctum (‘a hole punched in; a point, puncture’), substantive use of pūnctus m, perfect passive participle of pungō (‘to prick, punch’); alternatively, from Old French pointe f (‘sharp tip’), from Latin pūncta f (past participle), all from Proto-Italic *pungō (‘to sting, prick’).disputed Scholars disagree here; the competing view is quoted as the source gives it. Mostly displaced native Middle English ord (‘point’), from Old English ord (‘point’).

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Word family

English words that share an ancestor with point, grouped by the ancestor they share, most familiar first.

through Latin pungō ‘to prick, punch’

  • punch ← punchen ← ponchonner ← ponchon ← punctio
  • puncture ← punctūra ← pūnctus
  • pungent ← pungens
  • poignant ← poynaunt ← puignant
  • punctuate ← pūnctuātus ← pūnctuō ← pūnctus
  • compunction ← compunccion ← compunctionem ← compunctus ← compungere
  • pugilist ← pugil

through Latin pūnctum ‘a hole punched in’

32 more relatives in the full family tree

No ads, ever.

Become a founding member, $29 onceI have a code

Explore everything descended from *pewǵ- →

Another origin of point

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pewǵ-‘prick, punch’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pungō‘to prick, sting’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpungō‘to prick, puncture’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpūnctum
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400pointier
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500pointen
  7. Englishtodaypoint

No ads, ever. This is how the app stays alive.

Become a founding member, $29 onceWear this word, $32Support the app

Today it means

noun Something tiny, as a pinprick; a very small mark.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “point”. 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 *pewǵ- / point