 A variety of unproven Latin etymologies have been proposed , including <unk> ( receptacle ) , <unk> ( house ) , and <unk> ( <unk> or case ) . It has also been speculated to be from the Italian word <unk> , derived from <unk> , meaning <unk> . William E. <unk> wrote an article in 1981 concluding that , " As for the word ' condom ' , I need state only that its origin remains completely unknown , and there ends this search for an etymology . " Modern dictionaries may also list the etymology as " unknown " . 
