Etymology

heliocentric

H4E1L1I1O1C3E1N1T1R1I1C3

Today it means: Having the sun at the center/centre; usually in reference to a coordinate system or orbit. Full definition →

Ancient Greek κεντρικός (kentrikós) ← Proto-Hellenic *kéntron ← Proto-Indo-European *ḱéntrom
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*sóh₂wl̥
  2. Proto-Indo-European*sh₂wél(i)yos
  3. Proto-Hellenic*hāwélios
  4. Ancient Greekἥλῐος (hḗlĭos)
  5. Englishhelio-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*ḱen-?
  7. Proto-Indo-European*ḱéntrom
  8. Proto-Hellenic*kéntron
  9. Ancient Greekκέντρον (kéntron)
  10. Ancient Greekκεντρικός (kentrikós)
  11. English todayheliocentric

From helio- + -centric.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.