*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of algal

Etymology tree substratebor.? Latin algalbor. English alga Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Proto-Indo-European *-is Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālislbor. Old French -albor. ▲ Latin -ālis Old Fr

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
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 ↗
noun

An alga.

adj

Pertaining to, or like, algae.

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

Etymology tree substratebor.? Latin algalbor. English alga Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Proto-Indo-European *-is Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālislbor. Old French -albor. ▲ Latin -ālis Old French -elbor. ▲ Latin -ālisbor. Middle English -al English -al English algal From alga + -al.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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        "1": "en",
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        "3": "alga",
        "4": "-al<id:adjectival>",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nsubstratebor.?\nLatin algalbor.\nEnglish alga\nProto-Indo-European *h₂el-\nProto-Indo-European *-is\nProto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.?\nProto-Italic *-ālis\nLatin -ālislbor.\nOld French -albor.\n▲\nLatin -ālis\nOld French -elbor.\n▲\nLatin -ālisbor.\nMiddle English -al\nEnglish -al\nEnglish algal\n[Appendix:Glossary#learned_borrowing|Learned borrowing]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"bor.\", \"is_uncertain\" : true, \"keyword_label\" : \"Borrowed from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"lang_name\" : \"substrate\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"children\" : [ ], \"lang\" : \"qfa-sub\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"alga\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"lbor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"alga\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }, { \"id\" : \"adjectival\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"adjectival suffix\", \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"bor.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Borrowed from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"forming adjectives\", \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"lbor.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Learned borrowing from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"adjectivizing suffix\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"der.\", \"is_uncertain\" : true, \"keyword_label\" : \"Derived from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"alt\" : \"*h₂élis\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"grow\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*h₂el-\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" }, { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*-is\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Italic\", \"term\" : \"*-ālis\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"itc-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"-ālis\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"lbor\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Old French\", \"term\" : \"-al\", \"lang\" : \"fro\" }, { \"id\" : \"adjective\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"is_duplicate\" : true, \"children\" : [ ], \"id\" : \"adjectivizing suffix\", \"status\" : { \"1\" : \"la\", \"2\" : \":inh\", \"3\" : \"itc-pro:*-ālis\", \"id\" : \"adjectivizing suffix\", \"title\" : \"-ālis\", \"pos\" : \"suffix\" }, \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"-ālis\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Old French\", \"term\" : \"-el\", \"lang\" : \"fro\" }, { \"is_duplicate\" : true, \"children\" : [ ], \"id\" : \"adjectivizing suffix\", \"status\" : { \"1\" : \"la\", \"2\" : \":inh\", \"3\" : \"itc-pro:*-ālis\", \"id\" : \"adjectivizing suffix\", \"title\" : \"-ālis\", \"pos\" : \"suffix\" }, \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"-ālis\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"-al\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"-al\", \"lang\" : \"en\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"algal\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"algal\">\nFrom alga + -al."
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    }
  ],
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    ],
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      "alga",
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    ],
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      "*h₂el-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂el-#Proto-Indo-European:_grow"
    ],
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      "*-is",
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    ],
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    ],
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    ]
  ],
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      "glosses": [
        "An alga."
      ],
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        "Pertaining to, or like, algae."
      ],
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        "not-comparable"
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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 algal →

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
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-YWxnYWw