contemplation n.

word-forming element usually meaning "with, together," from Latin com, archaic form of classical Latin cum "together, together with, in combination," from PIE *kom- "beside, near, by, with" (compare Old English ge-, German ge-). The prefix in Latin sometimes was used as an intensive.

Before vowels and aspirates, it is reduced to co-; before -g-, it is assimilated to cog- or con-; before -l-, assimilated to col-; before -r-, assimilated to cor-; before -c-, -d-, -j-, -n-, -q-, -s-, -t-, and -v-, it is assimilated to con-, which was so frequent that it often was used as the normal form.

"building for worship, edifice dedicated to the service of a deity or deities," Old English tempel, from Latin templum "piece of ground consecrated for the taking of auspices, building for worship of a god," of uncertain signification.

Commonly referred to PIE root *tem- "to cut," on notion of "place reserved or cut out" [Watkins], or to root *temp- "to stretch" [Klein, de Vaan], on notion of "cleared (measured) space in front of an altar" (from PIE root *ten- "to stretch;" compare temple (n.2)), the notion being perhaps the "stretched" string that marks off the ground. Compare Greek temenos "sacred area around a temple," literally "place cut off," from stem of temnein "to cut." Figurative sense of "any place regarded as occupied by divine presence" was in Old English. Applied to Jewish synagogues from 1590s.

also *temə-, Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to cut."

It forms all or part of: anatomy; atom; contemplate; contemplation; diatom; dichotomy; -ectomy; entomolite; entomology; entomophagous; epitome; phlebotomy; temple (n.1) "building for worship;" tmesis; tome; -tomy; tonsorial; tonsure.

It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Greek temnein "to cut," tomos "volume, section of a book," originally "a section, piece cut off;" Old Church Slavonic tina "to cleave, split;" Middle Irish tamnaim "I cut off," Welsh tam "morsel."