English
polypodium
Polypodium comes from Late Latin polypodium ‘a polypody’, from Ancient Greek πούς ‘-pod, foot’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ped- ‘to walk, to step’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ped-1‘to walk, to step’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pṓds2‘foot’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπούς3poús‘-pod, foot’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπολυπόδιον3polupódion‘common polypody’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEpolypodium3‘a polypody’
- Englishtodaypolypodium3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *pṓds
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek πούς
- 3 Wiktionary, English polypodium
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ped-Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *pṓds‘to walk, to step’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pṓdsWiktionary, Ancient Greek πούς‘foot’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπούςWiktionary, English polypodiumpoús‘-pod, foot’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπολυπόδιονWiktionary, English polypodiumpolupódion‘common polypody’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEpolypodiumWiktionary, English polypodium‘a polypody’
- EnglishtodaypolypodiumWiktionary, English polypodium
The story
Later reinforced by the translingual scientific use of Polypodium.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ped- ‘to walk, to step’
pilot, expedition, fetch, impeachment, footing, footed, impediment, expedite, ped, fet, fetter, pada, 48 more
through Proto-Indo-European *pṓds ‘foot’
feet, foot, pie, pioneer, pedestrian, pedal, pawn, pedigree, impede, pug, pes, baht, centipede, pedicure, peon, petiole, pedometer, biped, quadruped, pedicel, pedicle, 37 more
through Ancient Greek πούς ‘-pod, foot’
Today it means
noun Synonym of polypody: any fern of the genus Polypodium.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “polypodium”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Indo-European *pṓds, Ancient Greek πούς. 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 *ped- / polypodium