Etymograph

English

stole

Stole comes from Latin stola ‘stola, a long gown or dress worn by women as a…’, from Ancient Greek στολή ‘stole, garment, equipment’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *stel- ‘to set’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*stel-1‘to set’reconstructed
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEστέλλω2‘to clothe’
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEστολή3stolḗ‘stole, garment, equipment’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEstola3‘stola, a long gown or dress worn by women as a symbol of status’
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150stole3
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1938stole3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek στέλλω, which cites Beekes
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek στολή
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English stole
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1938, Xavier Herbert: “With sou'-wester under arm, and oilskin open so that…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*stel-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek στέλλω, which cites Beekes‘to set’reconstructed
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEστέλλωWiktionary, Ancient Greek στολή‘to clothe’
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEστολήWiktionary, English stolestolḗ‘stole, garment, equipment’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEstolaWiktionary, English stole‘stola, a long gown or dress worn by women as a symbol of status’
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150stoleWiktionary, English stole
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1938stoleWiktionary, English stole. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1938, Xavier Herbert: “With sou'-wester under arm, and oilskin open so that…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *stel- ‘to set’

local, allow, location, locate, install, stall, lieu, loco, locus, stalk, stale, locator, stool, epistle, locative, stela, stell, stele, stolid, 30 more

through Ancient Greek στέλλω ‘to clothe’

apostle, apostolate, 3 more

Another origin of stole

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*stel-‘to put, to place’reconstructed
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEstolō‘a shoot, branch, or twig springing from the root or stock of a tree’
  3. Englishtodaystole

Today it means

noun A garment consisting of a decorated band worn on the back of the neck, each end hanging over the chest, worn in ecclesiastical settings or sometimes as a part of graduation dress, corresponding to the Eastern epitrachelion.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “stole”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek στέλλω, Ancient Greek στολή. 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 *stel- / stole

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