"hardening of the arteries," 1885, medical Latin, from arterio- + sclerosis.
Entries linking to arteriosclerosis
arterio-
word-forming element meaning "arterial," from Latinized form of Greek arteria "windpipe; artery" (see artery).
sclerosis n.
"a hardening," especially "morbid hardening of the tissue," late 14c., from Medieval Latin sclerosis "a hardness, hard tumor," from Greek sklērosis "hardening," from sklēros "hard" (see sclero-). Figurative use, "excessive resistance to change," is by 1954.
*wer- 1
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to raise, lift, hold suspended."
It forms all or part of: aerate; aeration; aerial; aero-; aerobics; aerophyte; aerosol; air (n.1) "invisible gases that surround the earth;" airy; aorta; anaerobic; aria; arterial; arterio-; arteriosclerosis; arteriole; artery; aura; malaria; meteor.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Greek aerein "to lift, raise up;" Lithuanian svarus "heavy," sverti "to lift, weigh;" Old English swar, Old Norse svarr, Old High German swar, German schwer "heavy."