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View synonyms for etymology

etymology

[ et-uh-mol-uh-jee ]

noun

, plural et·y·mol·o·gies.
  1. the derivation of a word.

    Synonyms: origin, derivation

  2. a chronological account of the birth and development of a particular word or element of a word, often delineating its spread from one language to another and its evolving changes in form and meaning.
  3. the study of historical linguistic change, especially as manifested in individual words.


etymology

/ ˌɛtɪməˈlɒdʒɪkəl; ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒɪ /

noun

  1. the study of the sources and development of words and morphemes
  2. an account of the source and development of a word or morpheme
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Derived Forms

  • ˌetyˈmologist, noun
  • etymological, adjective
  • ˌetymoˈlogically, adverb
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Other Words From

  • et·y·mo·log·i·cal [et-, uh, -m, uh, -, loj, -i-k, uh, l], ety·mo·logic adjective
  • ety·mo·logi·cal·ly adverb
  • ety·molo·gist noun
  • pseudo·ety·mo·logi·cal adjective
  • pseudo·ety·mo·logi·cal·ly adverb
  • subet·y·molo·gy noun plural subetymologies
  • unet·y·mo·logic adjective
  • unet·y·mo·logi·cal adjective
  • unet·y·mo·logi·cal·ly adverb
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Word History and Origins

Origin of etymology1

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin etymologia, from Greek etymología, equivalent to etymológ(os) “studying the true meanings and values of words” ( étymo(s) “true” + lógos “word, reason”) + -ia noun suffix; etymon, -y 3
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Word History and Origins

Origin of etymology1

C14: via Latin from Greek etumologia; see etymon , -logy
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Example Sentences

If you sign up, you’ll get a daily notification on your phone to check out a term you may not have heard before and fun facts about the etymology of each.

Builder is a word with Old English roots in the ideas “to be, exist, grow,” according to the Online Dictionary of Etymology.

I moved to Washington in 1988 with the folk etymology of lobbyist firmly in mind.

The Daily Beast reached out to Eschliman to ask about the definition and etymology of the term "Gaystapo."

Its origins and etymology are veiled in mystery: cha is Chinese for “tea,” but debates rage over those first two syllables.

Since etymology is epicentral to politics, the new titles that the Republican and Democratic parties choose must be right.

He understands this to mean "sheltered, secure from wind;" and he asks to what etymology this sense can be attributed.

I would have made the Saracens descend from Sarah; the etymology would then have been neater.

No amount of brainwork has conjured any sense from Iffley, and the etymology has been placed on the shelf as “unknown”.

In a moment of noteworthy frankness Prof. Skeat has admitted that “Scientific etymology is usually clumsy and frequently wrong”.

The official etymology of June is “probably from root of Latin juvenis, junior,” but where is the sense in this?

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