| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
Appendix I Indo-European Roots |
| ENTRY: | pel -1 |
| DEFINITION: | To fill; with derivatives referring to abundance and multitude. Oldest form *pel1-; variant *ple1-, contracted to *pl -.Derivatives include fill, plenty, folk, accomplish, expletive, and plebeian. I. Zero-grade form *p  -. 1. Suffixed form *p-no-. full1, from Old English full, full, from Germanic *fulnaz, *fullaz, full. 2. fill, from Old English fyllan, to fill (from Germanic derivative verb *fulljan, to fill), and fyllu, full amount (from Germanic abstract noun *full- n -, fullness). 3. plenary, plenitude, plenty, plenum; plenipotentiary, replenish, terreplein, from Latin plnus, full, from Latin stem *plno-, replacing *pl no- (influenced by Latin verb plre, to fill; see IV. 1. below). 4. Suffixed form *p-go-. a. folk, from Old English folc, people; b. Herrenvolk, volkslied, from Old High German folc, people. Both a and b from Germanic *folkam.II. Suffixed form *p(e)l -u-. 1. Obscure comparative form. più, plural, plus; nonplus, pluperfect, surplus, from Latin pl s, more (Archaic Latin plous). See also IV. 5. below. 2. O-grade form *pol()-u-. poly-; hoi polloi, from Greek polus, much, many. 3. Possibly from this root (but probably rather from pel-1) is Latin pals, marsh (? < “inundated”): paludal. III. Suffixed form *p(e)l -o-. Latin compound manipulus (see man-2).IV. Variant form *pl -. 1. accomplish, complete, compliment, comply, deplete, expletive, implement, replete, supply, from Latin plre, to fill. 2. Possibly suffixed form *pl-dhw-. plebe, plebeian, plebs; plebiscite, from Latin plbs, plbs, the people, multitude. 3. Suffixed form *pl-dhwo-. plethora; plethysmograph, from Greek derivative verb plthein, to be full. 4. Suffixed adjective (positive) form *pl-ro-. plerocercoid, from Greek plrs, full. 5. Suffixed (comparative) form *pl-i(s)on-. pleo-, pleonasm; pleiotaxy, pleiotropism, Pliocene, from Greek plen, plein, more. 6. Suffixed (superlative) form *pl-isto-. Pleistocene, from Greek pleistos, most.V. Possibly Sanskrit p ra , cake (< “that which fills or satisfies”): poori. (Pokorny 1. pel- 798.) |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. | |
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