granite

Where does the word "granite" come from? It comes from Latin granum, passing through Italian before entering English (1640s).

Granite’s story begins in Latin: granum meant “a grain.” A grain, describing the coarse-grained texture of the rock. By 1600s, the word had taken hold in Italian as granito. Settled in Italian for the speckled, grainy stone. It reached English by 1640s as granite. Italian 'grained', from its visible crystals. Today, granite means a common, hard, coarse-grained igneous rock used in construction.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient granum "a grain", a grain, describing the coarse-grained texture of the rock.
2. Stage 2 · Italian · 1600s granito "a grainy, speckled rock", settled in Italian for the speckled, grainy stone.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1640s granite "a hard, coarse-grained igneous rock", Italian 'grained', from its visible crystals.