Etymology

ibuprofen

I1B3U1P3R1O1F4E1N1

Today it means: A synthetic compound used widely as an analgesic and anti-inflammatory drug. Full definition →

English phen(yl) ← French phényle ← Ancient Greek ῡ̔́λη (hū́lē)
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The story

  1. Englishisobut(anol)
  2. Proto-Indo-European*swel-der.?
  3. Ancient Greekῡ̔́λη (hū́lē)
  4. Englishi(so)bu(tyl)
  5. Englishpro(pionic acid)
  6. Proto-Indo-European*bʰeh₂-
  7. Proto-Indo-European*bʰh₂nyéti
  8. Proto-Hellenic*pʰáňňō
  9. Ancient Greekφαίνω (phaínō)
  10. Frenchphéno-
  11. Ancient Greekῡ̔́λη (hū́lē)
  12. Frenchphényle
  13. Englishphen(yl)
  14. English todayibuprofen

From i(so)bu(tyl) + pro(pionic acid) + phen(yl).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.