Etymograph

English

vincristine

Vincristine comes from Latin crista ‘tuft of leaves on plants’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- ‘to turn, bend’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)ker-1‘to turn, bend’reconstructed
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcrista2‘tuft of leaves on plants’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 2010vincristine2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin crista
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English vincristine
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2010, Siddhartha Mukherjee, The Emperor of All Maladies: “Although originally intended as an antidiabetic, vincristine at small…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)ker-Wiktionary, Latin crista‘to turn, bend’reconstructed
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcristaWiktionary, English vincristine‘tuft of leaves on plants’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 2010vincristineWiktionary, English vincristine. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2010, Siddhartha Mukherjee, The Emperor of All Maladies: “Although originally intended as an antidiabetic, vincristine at small…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- ‘to turn, bend’

short, share, across, card, score, cross, cancer, screen, shirt, circle, circuit, curve, crucial, scare, circus, skirt, carnival, circulation, curb, scar, circa, cancellation, corona, shear, scorpion, shred, carnage, scrutiny, shrine, raffle, circulate, corolla, scorn, shrewd, incarceration, carcinoma, shard, carnal, cirque, circulatory, 117 more

through Latin crista ‘tuft of leaves on plants’

crest, 2 more

Today it means

noun A cytotoxic compound C₄₆H₅₆N₄O₁₀ of the alkaloid class obtained from the Madagascar periwinkle and used especially in the form of its sulfate to treat acute leukemia and other cancers.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “vincristine”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin crista. 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 *(s)ker- / vincristine

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