[1660–70; amaranth + -ine1]This word is first recorded in the period 1660–70. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: adhesive, cantilever, interleave, sketch, vocalize-ine is a suffix of adjectives of Greek or Latin origin, meaning “of or pertaining to,”“of the nature of,” “made of,” “like”. Other words that use the affix -ine include: asinine, crystalline, equine, marine