Advertisement

Origin and history of *sek-

*sek-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to cut." It might form all or part of: bisect; dissect; hacksaw; insect; intersect; resect; saw (n.1) "cutting tool;" Saxon; scythe; secant; secateurs; sect; section; sector; sedge; segment; skin; skinflint; skinny; transect.

It might also be the source of: Hittite shakk- "to know, pay attention to;" Latin secare "to cut," sectio "a cutting, cutting off, division;" Old Church Slavonic seko, sešti "to cut," sečivo "ax, hatchet," Russian seč' "to cut to pieces;" Lithuanian įsėkti "to engrave, carve;" Albanian šate "mattock;" Old Saxon segasna, Old English sigðe "scythe;" Old English secg "sword," seax "knife, short sword;" Old Irish doescim "I cut."

Entries linking to *sek-

bisect(v.)

"to cut in two," 1640s, from Modern Latin bisectus, from Latin bi- "two" (see bi-) + secare "to cut" (from PIE root *sek- "to cut"). Related: Bisected; bisecting.

dissect(v.)

c. 1600, "cut in pieces," from Latin dissectus, past participle of dissecare"cut in pieces," from dis- "apart" (see dis-) + secare "to cut" (from PIE root *sek- "to cut"). Or perhaps a back-formation from dissection. Specifically as "separate the distinct parts of an animal or plant for the purpose of studying its organization and functions or its morbid affections" from 1610s. Transferred sense of "examine part by part or point by point" is from 1630s. Related: Dissected; dissecting.

Advertisement

More to explore

insect
c. 1600, from Latin (animal) insectum "(animal) with a notched or divided body," literally "cut into," noun use of neuter past participle of insectare "to cut into, to cut up," from in- "into" (from PIE root *en "in") + secare "to cut" (from PIE root *sek- "to cut"). The Latin wo
resect
"cut off or away, pare off," 1650s, from Latin resectus, past participle of resecare "to cut off, cut loose, curtail," from re-, here perhaps an intensive prefix (see re-), + secare "to cut" (from PIE root *sek- "to cut"). The surgical sense of "excising of some part," of a bone,
saw
[toothed cutting tool] Middle English saue, from Old English sagu, from Proto-Germanic *sago "a cutting tool" (source also of Old English seax "knife," Old Norse sög, Norwegian sag, Danish sav, Swedish såg, Middle Dutch saghe, Dutch zaag, Old High German saga, German Säge "saw"),
sickle
Sichel) from Vulgar Latin *sicila, from Latin secula "sickle" (source also of Italian segolo "hatchet"), from PIE root *sek...
sail
In some sources (Klein, OED) referred to PIE root *sek- "to cut," as if meaning "a cut piece of cloth."...
Saxon
, short sword, dagger," Old High German Saxnot, name of a war-god), from Proto-Germanic *sahsa- "knife," from PIE root *sek...
inspiration
c. 1300, "immediate influence of God or a god," especially that under which the holy books were written, from Old French inspiracion "inhaling, breathing in; inspiration" (13c.), from Late Latin inspirationem (nominative inspiratio), noun of action from past-participle stem of La
holiday
1500s, earlier haliday (c. 1200), from Old English haligdæg "holy day, consecrated day, religious anniversary; Sabbath," from halig "holy" (see holy) + dæg "day" (see day); in 14c. meaning both "religious festival" and "day of exemption from labor and recreation," but pronunciati
trust
c. 1200, "reliance on the veracity, integrity, or other virtues of someone or something; religious faith," from Old Norse traust "help, confidence, protection, support," from Proto-Germanic abstract noun *traustam (source also of Old Frisian trast, Dutch troost "comfort, consolat
hedge
Old English hecg "hedge," originally any fence, living or artificial, from West Germanic *hagjo (source also of Middle Dutch hegge, Dutch heg, Old High German hegga, German Hecke "hedge"), from a verb *hagjanan, from PIE root *kagh- "to catch, seize; wickerwork, fence" (source al

Share *sek-

Advertisement
Trending
Dictionary entries near *sek-
Advertisement