*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of cupel

Borrowed from French coupelle, from Medieval Latin cūpella, from Latin cūpa (“cask”) + -ella (“-elle: forming feminine diminutives”). Equivalent to cup + -el.

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 2 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 · variant 1/2

Original entry ↗
noun

A small circular receptacle used in assaying gold or silver with lead.

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

Borrowed from French coupelle, from Medieval Latin cūpella, from Latin cūpa (“cask”) + -ella (“-elle: forming feminine diminutives”). Equivalent to cup + -el.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fr",
        "3": "coupelle"
      },
      "expansion": "French coupelle"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la-med",
        "3": "cūpella"
      },
      "expansion": "Medieval Latin cūpella"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "cūpa",
        "4": "",
        "5": "cask"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin cūpa (“cask”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "suffix",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "cup",
        "3": "el"
      },
      "expansion": "cup + -el"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "coupelle",
      "coupelle#French"
    ],
    [
      "cūpella",
      "cupella#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "cūpa",
      "cupa#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "cask",
      "cask"
    ],
    [
      "-ella",
      "-ella#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "-elle",
      "-elle"
    ],
    [
      "form",
      "form"
    ],
    [
      "feminine",
      "feminine"
    ],
    [
      "diminutive",
      "diminutive"
    ],
    [
      "cup",
      "cup#English"
    ],
    [
      "-el",
      "-el#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Welsh",
      "lang_code": "cy",
      "word": "ciwpel",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A small circular receptacle used in assaying gold or silver with lead."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "939c4e98516c0ee8573215d3e33aa5553e3446c51ab457e58c03d8a420759aa1",
      "rawRecordSha256": "a65a4629f06d913325b35857fdc5910841c1311f33baf69277c43b70d8cc08dd",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 896503
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Unnumbered source etymology · variant 2/2

Original entry ↗
verb

To refine or assay using a cupel.

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

Borrowed from French coupelle, from Medieval Latin cūpella, from Latin cūpa (“cask”) + -ella (“-elle: forming feminine diminutives”). Equivalent to cup + -el.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fr",
        "3": "coupelle"
      },
      "expansion": "French coupelle"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la-med",
        "3": "cūpella"
      },
      "expansion": "Medieval Latin cūpella"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "cūpa",
        "4": "",
        "5": "cask"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin cūpa (“cask”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "suffix",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "cup",
        "3": "el"
      },
      "expansion": "cup + -el"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "coupelle",
      "coupelle#French"
    ],
    [
      "cūpella",
      "cupella#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "cūpa",
      "cupa#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "cask",
      "cask"
    ],
    [
      "-ella",
      "-ella#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "-elle",
      "-elle"
    ],
    [
      "form",
      "form"
    ],
    [
      "feminine",
      "feminine"
    ],
    [
      "diminutive",
      "diminutive"
    ],
    [
      "cup",
      "cup#English"
    ],
    [
      "-el",
      "-el#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To refine or assay using a cupel."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "daa39e0f038952a8134697557934ebb772dc12746a0bdf7bb34a475c82ff7458",
      "rawRecordSha256": "e96bfb02b98b48c6182cf58c1b6ba16ec4a65a92fdac1ee54abbd97aaf29aa10",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 896504
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

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 cupel →

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
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-Y3VwZWw