Etymograph

English

renovation

Renovation comes from Latin renovātiō ‘renewal’, from Proto-Indo-European *néwos ‘new’, and ultimately from *nu ‘now’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*nu1‘now’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*néwos1‘new’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*néweh₂ti1‘to renew’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*nowāō1reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnovō1‘to make new, renew, refresh’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErenovō2‘to renew, restore or revive’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErenovātiō3‘renewal’
  8. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600renovation3
  9. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500renovacion3
  10. Englishearliest quotation 2017renovation3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin renovo
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin renovatio
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English renovation
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2017, Anru Lee, Wen-hui Anna Tang: “During the course, the Cijin District Office, the frontline…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*nuWiktionary, Latin renovo‘now’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*néwosWiktionary, Latin renovo‘new’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*néweh₂tiWiktionary, Latin renovo‘to renew’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*nowāōWiktionary, Latin renovoreconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnovōWiktionary, Latin renovo‘to make new, renew, refresh’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErenovōWiktionary, Latin renovatio‘to renew, restore or revive’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErenovātiōWiktionary, English renovation‘renewal’
  8. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600renovationWiktionary, English renovation
  9. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500renovacionWiktionary, English renovation
  10. Englishearliest quotation 2017renovationWiktionary, English renovation. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2017, Anru Lee, Wen-hui Anna Tang: “During the course, the Cijin District Office, the frontline…”

Equivalent to renovate + -ion

Proto-Indo-European *new-

…

Latin novō ‘to make new, renew, refresh’

Latin renovō ‘to renew’

Latin renovātus ‘renewed, restored, revived’

Middle English renovat(e) ‘renewed’

English renovate

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *nu ‘now’

noo, telenovela, 13 more

through Proto-Indo-European *néwos ‘new’

new, newly, novel, newer, neon, nova, novice, nuevo, newness, novitiate, 13 more

through Latin novō ‘to make new, renew, refresh’

innovation, innovate, innovator, 3 more

Today it means

noun An act, or the process, of renovating.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “renovation”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin renovo, Latin renovatio. 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 *nu / renovation

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