Etymologically
Log in

cardiac

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 17 October 2026 at 16:34. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈkɑːdɪæk/ (UK); /ˈkɑɹdiˌæk/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin cardiacus, perhaps influenced by French cardiaque,[2][3][4] from Ancient Greek καρδιακός (kardiakós, “of the heart”),[2][3] from καρδία (kardía, “heart; upper opening of the stomach”) (see heart),[2][3][5] from Proto-Indo-European *ḱérd (“heart”).[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of the heart: 1601, in Holland's translation of Pliny, in Barnhart, the OED and Merriam-Webster.[2][6][7] The noun was known in Middle English, about 1440, for a vein associated with the heart, and for heart disease;[2][6][5] these senses dropped out of use by the 16th century.[2]

Semantic evolution

Of medicines supposed to invigorate the heart it is from 1661,[6] and a cordial is called a cardiac from 1746.[6] Greek kardia could also mean the stomach, and in anatomy the cardia is still the opening of the stomach next to the oesophagus, from 1843;[3][6] compare English heartburn.[3] Cardiac arrest is attested from 1950,[3] and a person with a heart disorder is a cardiac from about 1929.[7][8]

Timeline

  • c. 1440 – cardiac, a heart vein (noun).[2]
  • 1601 – of the heart.[2][6]
  • 1746 – a cordial.[6]
  • 1843 – of the stomach's upper opening.[6]
  • 1950 – cardiac arrest.[3]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Relating to the heart: cardiac surgery.
  2. Relating to the part of the stomach next to the oesophagus.

Noun

  1. A person with a heart disorder.

Word family

  • intracardiac
  • postcardiac
  • precardiac
  • cardiac arrest
  • cardiac muscle
  • cardiac tamponade
  • cardiac output
  • cardiology
  • cardiopulmonary resuscitation
  • cordial
  • courage
  • endocardium
  • myocardium
  • pericardium
  • heart
  • cardio-
  • core

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  8. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin