*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of cis-

From the Latin preposition cis (“on this side of”). The earliest known use of the prefix relating to sexuality in any language was in a German-language book on sexology published in 1914. According to the Oxford English

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In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
prefix

On this side of. · Forms names of chemical compounds in which two atoms or groups are situated on the same side of some plane of symmetry passing through the compound. · Not trans. · Being, or pertaining to being, cis.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From the Latin preposition cis (“on this side of”). The earliest known use of the prefix relating to sexuality in any language was in a German-language book on sexology published in 1914. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the earliest use of the prefix in the context of gender in English dates from 1994.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":der",
        "3": "la:cis"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#derived_terms|Derived]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"cis\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"cis-\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"cis-\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin"
    },
    {
      "name": "quote-book",
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "author": "Ernst Burchard",
        "title": "Lexikon Des Gesamten Sexuallebens",
        "page": "32",
        "pageurl": "https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:11-713847/fragment/page=36",
        "passage": "Cisvestitismus, die Neigung, die Kleidung einer anderen Altersstufe, Volks- oder Berufsklasse des gleichen Geschlechts zum Zwecke sexueller Ent­spannung anzulegen, dem Transvestitismus verwandt (s. Verkleidungstrieb).",
        "translation": "Cisvestism, the tendency to don the clothes of a different age group, ethnic group, or profession of the same sex for the purpose of sexual relaxation, related to transvestism (see disguise instinct).",
        "year": "1914",
        "location": "Berlin",
        "url": "https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:11-713847",
        "id": "BV047570799"
      },
      "expansion": "1914, Ernst Burchard, Lexikon Des Gesamten Sexuallebens, Berlin, BV047570799, page 32:\nCisvestitismus, die Neigung, die Kleidung einer anderen Altersstufe, Volks- oder Berufsklasse des gleichen Geschlechts zum Zwecke sexueller Ent­spannung anzulegen, dem Transvestitismus verwandt (s. Verkleidungstrieb).\nCisvestism, the tendency to don the clothes of a different age group, ethnic group, or profession of the same sex for the purpose of sexual relaxation, related to transvestism (see disguise instinct)."
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":der",
        "3": "la:cis"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    }
  ],
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    [
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  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "prefix",
      "glosses": [
        "On this side of.",
        "Forms names of chemical compounds in which two atoms or groups are situated on the same side of some plane of symmetry passing through the compound.",
        "Not trans.",
        "Being, or pertaining to being, cis."
      ],
      "tags": [
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      ],
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      "rawRecordSha256": "cd488e2eb1cdec201f40f54291f81ce8b83ff1b6624fa9eff9124fe35c9fe19b",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 303713
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  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
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    "lexicalSenses": 0,
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  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for cis- →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
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Import run
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Permanent entry ID
w-Y2lzLQ