*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of theo-

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *dʰéh₁s Proto-Indo-European *dʰh₁sós Proto-Hellenic *tʰehós Ancient Greek θεός (theós) Ancient Greek θεο- (theo-)der. Latin theo-der.

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 ↗
prefix

god; deity

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

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *dʰéh₁s Proto-Indo-European *dʰh₁sós Proto-Hellenic *tʰehós Ancient Greek θεός (theós) Ancient Greek θεο- (theo-)der. Latin theo-der. English theo- From Latin theo- (“god”), combining form of theos (“god”); from Ancient Greek θεο- (theo-, “god”), combining form of θεός (theós, “god”).

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": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":der",
        "3": "la:theo-",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-\nProto-Indo-European *-s\nProto-Indo-European *dʰéh₁s\nProto-Indo-European *dʰh₁sós\nProto-Hellenic *tʰehós\nAncient Greek θεός (theós)\nAncient Greek θεο- (theo-)der.\nLatin theo-der.\nEnglish theo-\n[Appendix:Glossary#derived_terms|Derived]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"der.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Derived from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"do\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*dʰeh₁-\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" }, { \"id\" : \"amphikinetic\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*-s\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*dʰéh₁s\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*dʰh₁sós\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Hellenic\", \"term\" : \"*tʰehós\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"grk-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Ancient Greek\", \"term\" : \"θεός\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"grc\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Ancient Greek\", \"term\" : \"θεο-\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"grc\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"theo-\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"theo-\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"theo-\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "theo-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "god"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin theo- (“god”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "grc",
        "3": "θεο-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "god"
      },
      "expansion": "Ancient Greek θεο- (theo-, “god”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":der",
        "3": "la:theo-",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-\nProto-Indo-European *-s\nProto-Indo-European *dʰéh₁s\nProto-Indo-European *dʰh₁sós\nProto-Hellenic *tʰehós\nAncient Greek θεός (theós)\nAncient Greek θεο- (theo-)der.\nLatin theo-der.\nEnglish theo-"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*dʰeh₁-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/dʰeh₁-#Proto-Indo-European:_do"
    ],
    [
      "*-s",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-s#Proto-Indo-European:_amphikinetic"
    ],
    [
      "*dʰéh₁s",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/dʰéh₁s"
    ],
    [
      "*dʰh₁sós",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/dʰh₁sós"
    ],
    [
      "*tʰehós",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Hellenic/tʰehós"
    ],
    [
      "θεός",
      "θεός#Ancient_Greek"
    ],
    [
      "θεο-",
      "θεο-#Ancient_Greek"
    ],
    [
      "theo-",
      "theo-#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "theo-",
      "theo-#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "theos",
      "theos#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "θεο-",
      "θεο-#Ancient_Greek"
    ],
    [
      "θεός",
      "θεός#Ancient_Greek"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "prefix",
      "glosses": [
        "god; deity"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "morpheme"
      ],
      "recordId": "dce75e2ae0053008d4b3c85b3e247bb173806568b01e897ec73dda77233612ae",
      "rawRecordSha256": "8276ade9133768224e0572b1d9577ec0f3ab355dcb8afad7c29a518a5b0e1df4",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 2763636
    }
  ],
  "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 theo- →

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-dGhlby0