joint

Where does the word "joint" come from? It comes from Latin iungere, passing through Old French before entering English (1300s).

Joint’s story begins in Latin: iungere meant “to join.” The root of 'junction', 'conjugal' and 'yoke'. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as joint. Carried into French for a place where two parts are joined. It reached English by 1300s as joint. Settled as the English word for a point where two bones or parts connect. Today, joint means a point where two bones or parts connect, or shared between two or more people.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient iungere "to join", the root of 'junction', 'conjugal' and 'yoke'.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval joint "a place where two parts are joined", carried into French for a place where two parts are joined.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1300s joint "a point where two bones or parts connect", settled as the English word for a point where two bones or parts connect.