epoch

C2+ Topic:General Vocabulary

US /ˈɛpək/ UK /ˈiːpɒk/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
a notable period in history marked by distinctive events or characteristics

The printing press opened a new epoch in the spread of ideas.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a notable period in history... era age period time eon span

Opposites

instant moment

Word family

Derived forms epochal

Related forms epochal

Etymology

From Medieval Latin epocha, from Ancient Greek epokhḗ ('a stop, fixed point in time'), from epékhein ('to hold back, pause'), from epi- ('upon') + ékhein ('to hold').

epocha Latin ἐποχή Ancient Greek ἔχειν Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# epoch

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈɛpək/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈiːpɒk/

## Meanings
1. a notable period in history marked by distinctive events or characteristics

## Examples
- The printing press opened a new epoch in the spread of ideas.

## Synonyms
- era
- age
- period
- time
- eon
- span

## Antonyms
- instant
- moment

## Derived Forms
- epochal

## Related Forms
- epochal

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: epocha
- Root: ἐποχή
- Root: ἔχειν

## Etymology
From Medieval Latin epocha, from Ancient Greek epokhḗ ('a stop, fixed point in time'), from epékhein ('to hold back, pause'), from epi- ('upon') + ékhein ('to hold').

## AI Etymology
Epoch comes from Medieval Latin epocha, from Ancient Greek epokhḗ ('a stop, fixed point in time'), from epékhein ('to hold back, pause'), from epi- ('upon') + ékhein ('to hold'). Morphologically, the form is compositional: epi- marks part of the visible structure, while the remaining element supplies the lexical base. In present use, it is used as a noun meaning "a notable period in history marked by distinctive events or characteristics", so the historical material remains connected with the current sense rather than standing as bare ancestry. The wider English family includes derivatives such as epochal and related forms such as epochal, showing how the same historical material continues to organize neighboring vocabulary. The named historical forms include Latin epocha, Ancient Greek ἐποχή, and Ancient Greek ἔχειν, keeping the history tied to concrete forms rather than a loose resemblance.

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

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