Derivational etymology. Democritus correctly relates φλεγμονή to φλέγμα, probably assuming that φλέγμα itself is derived from φλέγω (see φλέγμα / φλέγω), and relying on the shared sequence [phlegm]. The original meaning of φλέγμα is "heat, fire". However, since in the theory of humors φλέγμα refers to a cold humor, the relationship between φλέγμα and φλέγω was discarded by some authors, and consequently the relationship between φλέγμα and φλεγμονή, too, the latter being directly derived from φλέγω. The whole controversy is rooted in the semantic evolution of φλέγμα and its technical meaning in the Hippocratic theory.