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Where does the word "temperature" come from? It comes from Latin temperatura, and was adopted directly into English (1600s).
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Where does the word "temperature" come from? It comes from Latin temperatura, and was adopted directly into English (1600s).
Temperature’s story begins in Latin: temperatura meant “a proper mixture, moderation.” A proper mixture, from temperare (to mix in proportion). It reached English by 1600s as temperature. Narrowed to mean the degree of heat or cold of a body. Today, temperature means a measure of the degree of heat or cold of a body or environment.
- Stage 1 · Latin · ancient temperatura "a proper mixture, moderation", a proper mixture, from temperare (to mix in proportion).
- Stage 2 · English · 1600s temperature "the degree of heat or cold", narrowed to mean the degree of heat or cold of a body.