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Where does the word "phase" come from? It comes from Greek phasis, and was adopted directly into English (1810s).
Read the full story
Where does the word "phase" come from? It comes from Greek phasis, and was adopted directly into English (1810s).
Phase’s story begins in Greek: phasis meant “appearance.” Greek, from 'phainein', to show: the moon's appearances. It reached English by 1810s as phase. General 'phases' of development date from the 1800s. Today, phase means a stage in a process.
- Stage 1 · Greek · ancient phasis "appearance", Greek, from 'phainein', to show: the moon's appearances.
- Stage 2 · English · 1810s phase "lunar phase", general 'phases' of development date from the 1800s.