English
radium
Radium comes from French radio(actif), from actif ‘active’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eǵ-1reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂éǵeti1‘to be driving’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*agō1‘to drive’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEagō1‘to act, to behave’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEāctīvus1‘active’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400actif1‘active’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentactif1‘active’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentradio(actif)1
- Frenchc. 1600–presentradium1
- Englishearliest quotation 1902radium1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English radium
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1902, Ernest Howard Adye, Radio-active Elements: “Madame [Marie] Curie, working with her distinguished husband, isolated…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eǵ-Wiktionary, English radiumreconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂éǵetiWiktionary, English radium‘to be driving’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*agōWiktionary, English radium‘to drive’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEagōWiktionary, English radium‘to act, to behave’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEāctīvusWiktionary, English radium‘active’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400actifWiktionary, English radium‘active’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentactifWiktionary, English radium‘active’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentradio(actif)Wiktionary, English radium
- Frenchc. 1600–presentradiumWiktionary, English radium
- Englishearliest quotation 1902radiumWiktionary, English radium. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1902, Ernest Howard Adye, Radio-active Elements: “Madame [Marie] Curie, working with her distinguished husband, isolated…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ-
suggest, register, essay, acre, gesture, congestion, digest, belligerent, progesterone, agrarian, gestation, ingestion, ingest, agitate, axiomatic, agger, samaj, gerund, gestion, 127 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂éǵeti ‘to be driving’
strategy, agony, antagonist, reactionary, axiom, antagonism, agonist, antagonize, glucagon, stratagem, agonize, 101 more
through Proto-Italic *agō ‘to drive’
reaction, transaction, unambiguous, reagent, ambiguously, 79 more
through Latin agō ‘to act, to behave’
act, action, agency, actual, agent, actor, agenda, examination, examine, ambiguous, squat, enact, agile, ambiguity, agility, assay, agitation, actuator, hyperactivity, cogent, actuation, inexact, exigent, actuate, redact, 91 more
through Latin āctīvus ‘active’
activity, actively, inactive, 24 more
through Old French actif ‘active’
through French actif ‘active’
Today it means
noun The chemical element (symbol Ra) with an atomic number of 88. It is a soft, shiny and silvery radioactive alkaline earth metal.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “radium”. 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 *h₂eǵ- / radium