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chi·ton

(kītn, kītŏn′)

1. Any of various marine mollusks of the class Polyplacophora that live on rocks and have shells consisting of eight overlapping calcareous plates. Also called sea cradle.

2. A tunic worn by men and women in ancient Greece.

[Greek khitōn, tunic, from Central Semitic *kittān, from Akkadian kitû, kita'um, flax, linen, from Sumerian gada, gida.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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