Etymograph

English

precipitous

Precipitous comes from French précipiteux, from Latin praeceps ‘precipice’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kap- ‘head’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kap-1‘head’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*káput2‘head’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kaput2‘head’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcaput3‘head’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpraeceps3‘precipice’
  6. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*praecipitōsus3reconstructed
  7. Frenchc. 1600–presentprécipiteux3
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1861precipitous3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *káput
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin caput
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English precipitous
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1861, E. J. Guerin, Mountain Charley: “About this time our journey began to be pleasant…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kap-Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *káput‘head’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*káputWiktionary, Latin caput‘head’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kaputWiktionary, Latin caput‘head’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcaputWiktionary, English precipitous‘head’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpraecepsWiktionary, English precipitous‘precipice’
  6. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*praecipitōsusWiktionary, English precipitousreconstructed
  7. Frenchc. 1600–presentprécipiteuxWiktionary, English precipitous
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1861precipitousWiktionary, English precipitous. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1861, E. J. Guerin, Mountain Charley: “About this time our journey began to be pleasant…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *kap- ‘head’

had, case, except, heavy, cash, catch, accept, behavior, capable, achieve, receive, cable, heavily, chase, capacity, capture, occupation, perception, haven, behave, reception, hawk, caption, captive, capsule, recipe, cater, susceptible, chassis, deception, anticipation, anticipate, captivity, cassette, conceive, recipient, casket, deceive, deceptive, conceivable, 135 more

through Proto-Indo-European *káput ‘head’

head, 61 more

through Proto-Italic *kaput ‘head’

capitalism, capitalize, capote, escapade, capitan, capitaine, 62 more

through Latin caput ‘head’

captain, capital, chapter, escape, cape, chef, cattle, cabin, chapel, capitol, capita, chaplain, cad, mischief, mischievous, chieftain, capillary, capo, cabana, capa, caddie, chattel, capuchin, scamper, scamp, chabot, jefe, capitulate, dishevelled, occipital, kaput, caput, chaperon, cabochon, 70 more

Today it means

adj Steep, like a precipice

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “precipitous”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Indo-European *káput, Latin caput. 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 *kap- / precipitous

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