The word 'transmittal' is built upon the core Latin verb mittere, meaning "to send, let go, throw." The prefix trans-, meaning "across," was attached to create the verb transmittere, which literally meant "to send across." This verb entered English as "transmit." The noun-forming suffix -al, common in Latin-derived vocabulary, was then appended to the verb stem to create "transmittal," denoting the act or instance of sending something across. Thus, the word's logic moves from the concrete idea of physically dispatching an object across a distance to the more abstract or formal concept of passing information, authority, or documents from one party to another.

Structure: trans (across) + mitt (send) + al (noun suffix) - trans: A Latin prefix meaning "across," "beyond," or "through." - mitt: From the Latin root mittere, meaning "to send." - al: A suffix of Latin origin used to form nouns of action from verbs.