Etymograph

English

sphene

Sphene comes from French sphène.

  1. Frenchc. 1600–presentsphène1
  2. Englishtodaysphene1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English sphene

Lineage

  1. Frenchc. 1600–presentsphèneWiktionary, English sphene
  2. EnglishtodayspheneWiktionary, English sphene

The story

From French sphène, coined by René Just Haüy in 1801, Traité de minéralogie vol. 3 p. 114, after Ancient Greek σφήν (sphḗn, “wedge”).

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Every English word from French sphène

Today it means

noun titanite

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “sphene”. 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 / French sphène / sphene

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