Etymograph

English

stamina

Stamina comes from Latin stāmen ‘warp (of a loom)’, from Proto-Indo-European *stéh₂mn̥ ‘that which stands, stature’, and ultimately from *steh₂-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*steh₂-1‘stand’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*stéh₂mn̥1‘that which stands, stature’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*stāmen1reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEstāmen2as stāmina‘warp (of a loom)’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1921stamina2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin stamen
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English stamina
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1921, P. G. Wodehouse: “In the first five minutes muscles which he had…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*steh₂-Wiktionary, Latin stamen‘stand’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*stéh₂mn̥Wiktionary, Latin stamen‘that which stands, stature’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*stāmenWiktionary, Latin stamenreconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEstāmenWiktionary, English staminaas stāmina‘warp (of a loom)’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1921staminaWiktionary, English stamina. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1921, P. G. Wodehouse: “In the first five minutes muscles which he had…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- ‘stand’

system, state, post, rest, stay, stand, distance, constitution, assistant, contest, stood, consistent, assistance, stadium, assist, establishment, establish, stable, instance, stem, testimony, resist, stability, substance, destiny, distant, destination, consist, instant, persistent, static, insist, prostitution, stud, prostitute, persist, stool, substitution, stationary, attest, 156 more

through Latin stāmen ‘warp (of a loom)’

stamen, 4 more

Today it means

noun The energy and strength for continuing to do something over a long period of time; power of sustained exertion, or resistance to hardship, illness etc.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “stamina”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin stamen. 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 *steh₂- / stamina

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