Etymograph

English

superficial

Superficial comes from Late Latin superficiālis ‘of or belonging to the surface’, from Latin faciēs ‘form, configuration, shape’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁k-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeh₁k-1reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰh₁kyéti1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*θakjō1reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*fakjō1‘to make’reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfaciō2‘to make, construct, fashion, frame, build, erect’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfaciēs3‘form, configuration, shape’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsuperficiēs4‘top, surface’
  8. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEsuperficiālis4‘of or belonging to the surface’
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1992superficial4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin facio
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin facies
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Latin superficies
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English superficial
  5. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1992, Rudolf Mathias Schuster, Chicago: “Secondly, I continue to base my concepts on intensive…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeh₁k-Wiktionary, Latin facioreconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰh₁kyétiWiktionary, Latin facioreconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*θakjōWiktionary, Latin facioreconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*fakjōWiktionary, Latin facio‘to make’reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfaciōWiktionary, Latin facies‘to make, construct, fashion, frame, build, erect’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfaciēsWiktionary, Latin superficies‘form, configuration, shape’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsuperficiēsWiktionary, English superficial‘top, surface’
  8. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEsuperficiālisWiktionary, English superficial‘of or belonging to the surface’
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1992superficialWiktionary, English superficial. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1992, Rudolf Mathias Schuster, Chicago: “Secondly, I continue to base my concepts on intensive…”

Linked words

through Proto-Italic *θakjō

effectively, effectiveness, ineffective, affectionate, 64 more

through Proto-Italic *fakjō ‘to make’

effective, factor, difficulty, manufacture, affection, faction, perfection, imperfect, 74 more

through Latin faciō ‘to make, construct, fashion, frame, build, erect’

fact, effect, feature, difficult, perfect, affect, profit, facility, infection, faculty, affair, sacrifice, efficient, feat, facilitate, interface, defect, deficit, fetish, efficacy, infect, facet, counterfeit, deficient, 95 more

through Latin faciēs ‘form, configuration, shape’

face, facial, facade, 7 more

Today it means

adj Existing, occurring, or located on the surface.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “superficial”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin facio, Latin facies, Latin superficies. 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 *dʰeh₁k- / superficial

Shirt and support for this word