Homologous
/həˈmɑː.lə.ɡəs/noun
Corresponding in structure, position, or origin; especially used in biology for parts derived from the same ancestral structure.
Did you know?Homologous comes from Greek homologos, a word built from homo- (“same”) + logos (“speech, word, reason”), so its deepest origin is about things that literally “say the same thing.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*meh₂- / *leg-
“Roots behind the ideas of sameness and speaking/gathering words”
Ancient Greek
Greek
ὁμός (homos) + λόγος (logos)
“same + word, speech, account, reason”
Late Greek
Greek
ὁμόλογος (homologos)
“agreeing, of the same kind; admitting the same statement”
Late Latin
Latin
homologus
“agreeing, corresponding”
16th Century
English
homologous
“corresponding, agreeing; later used in biology for shared structural origin”
Modern English
English
homologous
“having a corresponding structure or origin, especially in comparative anatomy and genetics”