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English word origin

Etymology of erg

From Ancient Greek ἔργον (érgon, “work”). Doublet of ergon and work.

3 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 3 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.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
noun

A unit of work or energy, being the amount of work done by a force of one dyne applied through a distance of one centimeter. Equal to 10⁻⁷ joules.

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

From Ancient Greek ἔργον (érgon, “work”). Doublet of ergon and work.

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.

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        "3": "ἔργον",
        "4": "",
        "5": "work"
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    },
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A large desert region of sand dunes with little or no vegetation, especially in the Sahara.

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

From French erg, from Algerian Arabic, from Arabic عِرْق (ʕirq).

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.

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      },
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      },
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    },
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
noun

An ergometer.

verb

To use an ergometer.

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

Shortening.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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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 erg →

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-ZXJn