Meaning

noun identifying the nature or cause of some phenomenon

originEtymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *dwísder. Ancient Greek διά (diá) Ancient Greek δια- (dia-) Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- Proto-Indo-European *-sḱéti Proto-Indo-European *ǵn̥h₃sḱétider. Proto-Hellenic *gignṓskō Ancient Greek γῐγνώσκω (gĭgnṓskō) Ancient Greek δῐαγῐγνώσκω (dĭagĭgnṓskō) Proto-Indo-European *-tis Ancient Greek -τις (-tis) Ancient Greek -σῐς (-sĭs) Ancient…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0