Etymology Map
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Vinyl

2 stages from Latin to English.

Today it means a type of plastic; records made from it

Where does the word "vinyl" come from? It comes from Latin vīnum, adopted directly into English (1860s).

1
Stage 1 of 2
vīnum
Latin · ancient
"wine"
wine
2
Stage 2 of 2
vinyl
English · 1860s
"vinyl plastic; records"
chemists named the vinyl group after ethyl alcohol, 'spirit of wine', plus Greek 'hylē', matter; PVC records replaced shellac from the late 1940s
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Vinyl’s story begins in Latin: vīnum meant “wine.” Wine. It reached English by 1860s as vinyl. Chemists named the vinyl group after ethyl alcohol, 'spirit of wine', plus Greek 'hylē', matter; PVC records replaced shellac from the late 1940s. Today, vinyl means a type of plastic; records made from it.