'enucleate' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'enucleare', where 'e-' meant 'out of' (variant of 'ex-') and 'nucleus' meant 'kernel'.

'enucleate' changed from the Late Latin/Medieval Latin 'enucleare'/'enucleatus' and entered English usage via scientific and medical Latin in the 17th century.

Initially it meant 'to remove the kernel (core)', but over time it evolved into the current meaning 'to remove a nucleus or to remove something whole (especially surgically)'.