English
trajection
Trajection comes from Latin trāiectiō ‘a crossing over, passing over, passage’, from iaciō ‘throw, hurl’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(H)yeh₁-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(H)yeh₁-1‘to throw’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(H)yéh₁kt ~ *(H)ih₁ként1reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEiaciō1‘throw, hurl’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrāiciō2‘to throw, cast or hurl across or over’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrāiectiō2‘a crossing over, passing over, passage’
- Englishearliest quotation 1661trajection2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin traicio
- 2 Wiktionary, English trajection
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1661, Robert Boyle, London: […] J. Cadwell for J. Crooke: “But because I am not so sure, that when…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(H)yeh₁-Wiktionary, Latin traicio‘to throw’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(H)yéh₁kt ~ *(H)ih₁kéntWiktionary, Latin traicioreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEiaciōWiktionary, Latin traicio‘throw, hurl’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrāiciōWiktionary, English trajection‘to throw, cast or hurl across or over’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrāiectiōWiktionary, English trajection‘a crossing over, passing over, passage’
- Englishearliest quotation 1661trajectionWiktionary, English trajection. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1661, Robert Boyle, London: […] J. Cadwell for J. Crooke: “But because I am not so sure, that when…”
The story
The linguistics term was coined by Joseph L.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *(H)yeh₁- ‘to throw’
year, hour, catheter, enema, jut, abject, iambic, jetsam, dejection, 36 more
through Proto-Indo-European *(H)yéh₁kt ~ *(H)ih₁ként
objective, projection, objection, projectile, ejection, objector, 22 more
through Latin iaciō ‘throw, hurl’
disease, project, ease, adjacent, jet, object, jess, gist, injection, inject, jetty, conjecture, adjective, ejaculate, ejaculation, eject, joist, jettison, interject, subjection, 30 more
Today it means
noun The act of trajecting (casting or moving)
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “trajection”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin traicio. 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 *(H)yeh₁- / trajection