Etymograph

English

xylitol

Xylitol may come from Ancient Greek ξύλον ‘wood’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *kes- ‘to scrape’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kes-1‘to scrape’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ksewlo-1uncertain
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEξύλον2xúlon‘wood’uncertain
  4. Englishearliest quotation 2019xylitol2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ξύλον, which cites Beekes
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English xylitol
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2019, Matt Dorsey, Jenny Dorsey: “A note of caution to readers with pets: Xylitol…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kes-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ξύλον, which cites Beekes‘to scrape’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ksewlo-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek ξύλον, which cites Beekesuncertain
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEξύλονWiktionary, English xylitolxúlon‘wood’uncertain
  4. Englishearliest quotation 2019xylitolWiktionary, English xylitol. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2019, Matt Dorsey, Jenny Dorsey: “A note of caution to readers with pets: Xylitol…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *kes- ‘to scrape’

hair, herring, hards, 8 more

through Ancient Greek ξύλον ‘wood’

xylem, 3 more

Today it means

noun A pentahydric alcohol, C₅H₁₂O₅, penta-hydroxy pentane; derived from xylose; used as a sweetener.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “xylitol”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Ancient Greek ξύλον. 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 *kes- / xylitol

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