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Origin and history of module

module(n.)

1580s, "allotted measure," a sense now obsolete, from French module (1540s) or directly from Latin modulus "small measure," diminutive of modus "measure, manner" (from PIE root *med- "take appropriate measures").

Sense of "a standard measure to regulate proportions" is from 1620s. Meaning "interchangeable part" is recorded by 1955, via the notion of "length chosen as the basis for the dimensions of parts of a building, etc." (1936); that of "separate section of a spacecraft" is from 1961.

also from 1580s

Entries linking to module

*med-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "take appropriate measures."

It might form all or part of: accommodate; accommodation; commode; commodious; commodity; empty; immoderate; immodest; Medea; medical; medicament; medicaster; medicate; medication; medicine; medico; medico-; meditate; meditation; Medusa; meet (adj.) "proper, fitting;" mete (v.) "to allot;" modal; mode; model; moderate; modern; modest; modicum; modify; modular; modulate; module; modulation; mold (n.1) "hollow shape;" mood (n.2) "grammatical form indicating the function of a verb;" must (v.); premeditate; premeditation; remedial; remediation; remedy.

It might also be the source of: Sanskrit midiur "I judge, estimate;" Avestan vi-mad- "physician;" Greek mēdomai "be mindful of," medesthai "think about," medein "to rule," medon "ruler;" Latin meditari "think or reflect on, consider," modus "measure, manner," modestus "moderate," modernus "modern," mederi "to heal, give medical attention to, cure;" Irish miduir "judge;" Welsh meddwl "mind, thinking;" Gothic miton, Old English metan "to measure out."

-ule

word-forming element of Latin origin meaning "small, little" (in capsule, module, etc.), via French -ule, from Latin diminutive suffix -ulus (fem. -ula, neuter -ulum), from PIE *-(o)lo-, from *-lo-, secondary suffix forming diminutives, which also is the source of the first element in native diminutive suffix -ling. Cognate with Spanish, Portuguese -ula, -ulo. It is disguised in circle (n.), scruple (n.), etc., but the Latin is fully present in calculus.

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    late 14c., "ability, opportunity, means, resources," from Old French faculte "skill, accomplishment, learning" (14c., Modern French faculté) and directly from Latin facultatem (nominative facultas) "power, ability, capability, opportunity; sufficient number, abundance, wealth," f
    attention
    late 14c., attencioun, "a giving heed, active direction of the mind upon some object or topic," from Old French attencion and directly from Latin attentionem (nominative attentio) "attention, attentiveness," noun of action from past-participle stem of attendere "give heed to," li
    cartridge
    1570s, cartage, "case of cardboard, tin, etc., holding a charge of gunpowder" (also with the bullet or shot in firearms), corruption of French cartouche "a full charge for a pistol," originally wrapped in paper (16c.), from Italian cartoccio "roll of paper," an augmentative form
    will
    Old English *willan, wyllan "to wish, desire; be willing; be used to; be about to" (past tense wolde), from Proto-Germanic *willjan (source also of Old Saxon willian, Old Norse vilja, Old Frisian willa, Dutch willen, Old High German wellan, German wollen, Gothic wiljan "to will,
    language
    late 13c., langage "words, what is said, conversation, talk," from Old French langage "speech, words, oratory; a tribe, people, nation" (12c.), from Vulgar Latin *linguaticum, from Latin lingua "tongue," also "speech, language," from PIE root *dnghu- "tongue." The -u- is an Anglo
    sense
    late 14c., "meaning, signification, interpretation" (especially of Holy Scripture); c. 1400, "the faculty of perception;" from Old French sens "one of the five senses; meaning; wit, understanding" (12c.) and directly from Latin sensus "perception, feeling, undertaking, meaning,"
    compartment
    a part separated from adjoining parts by a partition," "1560s, from French compartiment "part partitioned off" (16c.), through Italian compartimento, from Late Latin compartiri "to divide," from com-, here probably as an intensive prefix (see com-), + partis, genitive of pars "a
    ability
    late 14c., "state or condition of being able; capacity to do or act," from Old French ableté "ability (to inherit)," from Latin habilitatem (nominative habilitas, in Medieval Latin abilitas) "aptitude, ability," noun of quality from habilis "easy to manage, handy" (see able). One
    speech
    Middle English speche, from Old English spæc "act of speaking; power of uttering articulate sounds; manner of speaking; statement, discourse, narrative, formal utterance; language." It is a variant of Old English spræc, which is from Proto-Germanic *sprek-, *spek- (source also of
    memory
    late 13c., "recollection (of someone or something); remembrance, awareness or consciousness (of someone or something)," also "fame, renown, reputation;" from Anglo-French memorie (Old French memoire, 11c., "mind, memory, remembrance; memorial, record") and directly from Latin mem

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