English
synaptic
Synaptic comes from New Latin synapticus, from Ancient Greek συναπτικός ‘capable of adjusting’, and ultimately from Proto-Hellenic *áptō.
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*áptō1reconstructedearlier origin unknown
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἅπτω2‘to join’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEσυνάπτω3‘to connect’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEσυναπτικός4sunaptikós‘capable of adjusting’
- New Latinc. 1500–1900synapticus4
- Englishearliest quotation 1913synaptic4
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ἅπτω
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek συνάπτω
- 3 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek συναπτικός
- 4 Wiktionary, English synaptic
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1913, Frederick McAllister: “By far the greater proportion of cytologists however are…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*áptōWiktionary, Ancient Greek ἅπτωreconstructedearlier origin unknown
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἅπτωWiktionary, Ancient Greek συνάπτω‘to join’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEσυνάπτωWiktionary, Ancient Greek συναπτικός‘to connect’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEσυναπτικόςWiktionary, English synapticsunaptikós‘capable of adjusting’
- New Latinc. 1500–1900synapticusWiktionary, English synaptic
- Englishearliest quotation 1913synapticWiktionary, English synaptic. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1913, Frederick McAllister: “By far the greater proportion of cytologists however are…”
Linked words
through Ancient Greek ἅπτω ‘to join’
Today it means
adj Of or relating to a synapse—the junction between the terminal of a neuron and another cell.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “synaptic”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek ἅπτω, Ancient Greek συνάπτω, Ancient Greek συναπτικός. 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-Hellenic *áptō / synaptic