radio

Where does the word "radio" come from? It comes from Latin radius, and was adopted directly into English (1897).

Radio’s story begins in Latin: radius meant “a ray, a beam.” A ray, a spoke, the root behind radiating waves. It reached English by 1897 as radio. Coined for the technology transmitting signals via radiating electromagnetic waves. Today, radio means a technology and device for transmitting and receiving sound via electromagnetic waves.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient radius "a ray, a beam", a ray, a spoke, the root behind radiating waves.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1897 radio "a technology for transmitting sound via electromagnetic waves", coined for the technology transmitting signals via radiating electromagnetic waves.