English
quadragene
Quadragene comes from Late Latin quadragēna ‘40-day period, Lent’, from Latin quadrāgēnus ‘40 each’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kʷétwr̥dḱomt ‘four-ten’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷétwr̥dḱomt1‘four-ten’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquadrāgintā2‘four tens, forty’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquadrāgēnus2‘40 each’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEquadragēna2‘40-day period, Lent’
- Englishearliest quotation 1664quadragene2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin quadraginta
- 2 Wiktionary, English quadragene
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1664, Jeremy Taylor, A Disswasive from Popery to the People of Ireland: “You have with much labour, and some charge, purchased…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷétwr̥dḱomtWiktionary, Latin quadraginta‘four-ten’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquadrāgintāWiktionary, English quadragene‘four tens, forty’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquadrāgēnusWiktionary, English quadragene‘40 each’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEquadragēnaWiktionary, English quadragene‘40-day period, Lent’
- Englishearliest quotation 1664quadrageneWiktionary, English quadragene. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1664, Jeremy Taylor, A Disswasive from Popery to the People of Ireland: “You have with much labour, and some charge, purchased…”
Linked words
through Latin quadrāgintā ‘four tens, forty’
Today it means
noun An indulgence from 40 days of fasting or similar abstinence, especially during Lent; (later) various equivalent indulgences against punishment in Purgatory.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “quadragene”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin quadraginta. 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 *kʷétwr̥dḱomt / quadragene