Etymograph

English

retaliate

Retaliate comes from Latin retāliō ‘to requite, retaliate’, from tālis ‘such’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘to grow, nourish’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-1‘to grow, nourish’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂élis1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*th₂élis1uncertain
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*tālis1reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtālis1‘such’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtāliō2‘retaliation’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEretāliō3‘to requite, retaliate’
  8. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEretāliātus3past participle of retāliō
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1634retaliate3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin talio
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin retalio
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English retaliate
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1634, Thomas Herbert, A Relation of Some Yeares Trauaile: “One ambassador sent word to the duke's son that…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-Wiktionary, Latin talio‘to grow, nourish’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂élisWiktionary, Latin talioreconstructed
  3. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*th₂élisWiktionary, Latin taliouncertain
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*tālisWiktionary, Latin talioreconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtālisWiktionary, Latin talio‘such’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtāliōWiktionary, Latin retalio‘retaliation’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEretāliōWiktionary, English retaliate‘to requite, retaliate’
  8. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEretāliātusWiktionary, English retaliatepast participle of retāliō
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1634retaliateWiktionary, English retaliate. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1634, Thomas Herbert, A Relation of Some Yeares Trauaile: “One ambassador sent word to the duke's son that…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘to grow, nourish’

as, all, old, else, adult, el, element, ultra, ultimate, elder, ellen, alien, outrage, ou, altitude, alumni, alter, adolescent, alt, alpine, altar, abolish, alto, alum, auld, alias, alp, altruism, alimony, ulterior, alibi, parallax, coalesce, proletariat, exalt, althea, aad, eld, altimeter, foetal, 65 more

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂élis

qualification

through Latin tāliō ‘retaliation’

tailor, 2 more

Today it means

verb To do something harmful or negative to get revenge for some harm; to fight back or respond in kind to an injury or affront.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “retaliate”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin talio, Latin retalio. 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 *h₂el- / retaliate

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