Copulate
/ˈkɒp.jʊ.leɪt/noun
To join together physically for reproduction; to have sexual intercourse.
Did you know?Copulate comes from Latin copulatus, past participle of copulare, meaning “to fasten, bind, or couple together,” from copula, “a bond or tie,” a root that also gave English its grammar term copula—the word that *binds* subject to predicate.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*keh₂p-
“to seize, take hold of”
Latin
Latin
copula
“a bond, tie, or link”
Classical Latin
Latin
copulare
“to fasten, join, or couple together”
Late Latin
Latin
copulatus
“joined, united”
Middle English
English
copulen
“to join or unite”
Modern English
English
copulate
“to have sexual intercourse”