Etymograph

English

semen

Semen comes from Latin sēmen ‘seed’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *seh₁- ‘to sow’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*seh₁-1‘to sow’reconstructed
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsēmen1‘seed’
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500semen1
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1961semen1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English semen
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1961, Harry E. Wedeck, Dictionary of Aphrodisiacs: “Then add four drops of crocodile semen, and pass…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*seh₁-Wiktionary, English semen‘to sow’reconstructed
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsēmenWiktionary, English semen‘seed’
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500semenWiktionary, English semen
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1961semenWiktionary, English semen. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1961, Harry E. Wedeck, Dictionary of Aphrodisiacs: “Then add four drops of crocodile semen, and pass…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *seh₁- ‘to sow’

since, side, season, earn, seed, sow, seminary, serene, sower, 15 more

through Latin sēmen ‘seed’

seminar, dissemination, seminal, 11 more

through Middle English semen

seem, 1 more

Today it means

noun A sticky, milky fluid produced in male reproductive organs that contains the reproductive cells.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “semen”. 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 *seh₁- / semen

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