Cacation
/kəˈkeɪʃən/noun
The act of defecating or passing feces.
Did you know?Cacation ultimately comes from an ancient expressive word for excrement or defecation, a kind of taboo baby-talk that survived into formal medical and technical vocabulary.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient expressive vocabulary
Proto-Indo-European?
*kakka-
“A reconstructed imitative or nursery form associated with excrement; the ultimate source is uncertain and may not be securely Indo-European.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
κακκάω (kakkáō)
“To defecate; an expressive term associated with bodily elimination.”
Classical Latin
Latin
cacāre
“To defecate or discharge the bowels.”
Classical Latin
Latin
cacātiō
“Defecation; the act of evacuating the bowels.”
17th Century
English
cacation
“The act of defecating, adopted as a learned medical or technical noun.”
Modern English
English
cacation
“Defecation; an extremely rare and formal term for passing feces.”