Etymograph

English

propulsation

Propulsation comes from Latin propulsatio ‘repulse’, from prōpulsō ‘to drive forward, propel’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pelh₂- ‘to approach’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pelh₂-1‘to approach’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pl̥-né-h₂-ti ~ *pl̥-n-h₂-énti1uncertain
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pelnō2‘to approach’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpellō2‘to push, drive, hurl, impel, propel’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpulso2
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōpulsō3‘to drive forward, propel’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpropulsatio4‘repulse’
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1649propulsation4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Italic *pelnō
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin propulso
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Latin propulsatio
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English propulsation
  5. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1649, Bishop Hall: “The just cause of war is the propulsation of…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pelh₂-Wiktionary, Proto-Italic *pelnō‘to approach’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pl̥-né-h₂-ti ~ *pl̥-n-h₂-éntiWiktionary, Proto-Italic *pelnōuncertain
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pelnōWiktionary, Latin propulso‘to approach’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpellōWiktionary, Latin propulso‘to push, drive, hurl, impel, propel’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpulsoWiktionary, Latin propulso
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōpulsōWiktionary, Latin propulsatio‘to drive forward, propel’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpropulsatioWiktionary, English propulsation‘repulse’
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1649propulsationWiktionary, English propulsation. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1649, Bishop Hall: “The just cause of war is the propulsation of…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *pelh₂- ‘to approach’

polish, appel, 13 more

through Proto-Italic *pelnō ‘to approach’

repellent, 10 more

through Latin pellō ‘to push, drive, hurl, impel, propel’

appeal, repeal, compulsory, impulse, compel, expel, appellate, repel, dispel, compulsive, pelt, expulsion, propel, impel, rappel, repulse, 14 more

through Latin pulso

push, pulse, 4 more

Today it means

noun The act of driving away or repelling; a keeping at a distance.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “propulsation”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Italic *pelnō, Latin propulso, Latin propulsatio. 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 *pelh₂- / propulsation

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