diabetes

Where does the word "diabetes" come from? It comes from Greek diabetes, and was adopted directly into English (1400s).

Diabetes’s story begins in Greek: diabetes meant “a siphon, a passing through.” Literally a passing through, a siphon, from diabainein (to pass through). It reached English by 1400s as diabetes. Settled as the medical word for the condition marked by excessive urination. Today, diabetes means a chronic condition in which the body cannot properly regulate blood sugar.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient diabetes "a siphon, a passing through", literally a passing through, a siphon, from diabainein (to pass through).
2. Stage 2 · English · 1400s diabetes "a condition affecting blood sugar regulation", settled as the medical word for the condition marked by excessive urination.