What does Etymology mean?

Definitions for Etymology
ˌɛt əˈmɒl ə dʒiet·y·mol·o·gy

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word Etymology.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. etymologynoun

    a history of a word

  2. etymologynoun

    the study of the sources and development of words

Wiktionary

  1. etymologynoun

    The study of the historical development of languages, particularly as manifested in individual words.

  2. etymologynoun

    An account of the origin and historical development of a word.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. ETYMOLOGYnoun

    Etymology: etymologia, Lat. [ἔτυμος and λόγος.

    Consumption is generally taken for any universal diminution and colliquation of the body, which acception its etymology implies. Gideon Harvey, on Consumptions.

    When words are restrained, by common usage, to a particular sense, to run up to etymology, and construe them by dictionary, is wretchedly ridiculous. Jeremy Collier, View of the Stage.

    Pelvis is used by comick writers for a looking-glass, by which means the etymology of the word is visible, and pelvidera will signify a lady who looks in her glass. Joseph Addison, Spectator.

    If the meaning of a word could be learned by its derivation or etymology, yet the original derivation of words is oftentimes very dark. Isaac Watts, Logick.

Wikipedia

  1. Etymology

    Etymology () is the study of the history of the form of words and, by extension, the origin and evolution of their semantic meaning across time. It is a subfield of historical linguistics, and draws upon comparative semantics, morphology, semiotics, and phonetics. For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts, and texts about the language, to gather knowledge about how words were used during earlier periods, how they developed in meaning and form, or when and how they entered the language. Etymologists also apply the methods of comparative linguistics to reconstruct information about forms that are too old for any direct information to be available. By analyzing related languages with a technique known as the comparative method, linguists can make inferences about their shared parent language and its vocabulary. In this way, word roots in European languages, for example, can be traced all the way back to the origin of the Indo-European language family. Even though etymological research originated from the philological tradition, much current etymological research is done on language families where little or no early documentation is available, such as Uralic and Austronesian.

ChatGPT

  1. Etymology

    Etymology refers to the study and analysis of the origin and development of words, including their historical and linguistic roots, as well as their changes in form and meaning over time. It involves tracing the historical and cultural influences that shape the vocabulary of a particular language or group of languages. By examining the etymology of words, linguists and researchers can gain insights into the connections between different languages, the evolution of linguistic structures, and the ways in which words reflect the history and culture of a society.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Etymologynoun

    that branch of philological science which treats of the history of words, tracing out their origin, primitive significance, and changes of form and meaning

  2. Etymologynoun

    that part of grammar which relates to the changes in the form of the words in a language; inflection

  3. Etymology: [L.etymologia, Gr. 'etymologi`a; 'e`tymon etymon + lo`gos discourse, description: cf. F. tymologie. See Etymon, and -logy.]

Wikidata

  1. Etymology

    Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time. By an extension, the term "the etymology of [a word]" means the origin of the particular word. For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during earlier periods of their history and when they entered the languages in question. Etymologists also apply the methods of comparative linguistics to reconstruct information about languages that are too old for any direct information to be available. By analyzing related languages with a technique known as the comparative method, linguists can make inferences about their shared parent language and its vocabulary. In this way, word roots have been found that can be traced all the way back to the origin of, for instance, the Indo-European language family. Even though etymological research originally grew from the philological tradition, currently much etymological research is done on language families where little or no early documentation is available, such as Uralic and Austronesian. The word etymology is derived from the Greek etymon, meaning true sense and the suffix -logia, denoting the study of.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Etymology

    et-i-mol′o-ji, n. the investigation of the derivation and original signification of words: the science that treats of the origin and history of words: the part of grammar relating to inflection.—adjs. Etym′ic; Etymolog′ical.—adv. Etymolog′ically.—ns. Etymolog′icon, -cum, an etymological dictionary.—v.t. Etymol′ogise, to give, or search into, the etymology of a word.—ns. Etymol′ogist, one skilled in or who writes on etymology; Et′ymon, the origin of a word: an original root: the genuine or literal sense of a word. [O. Fr.,—L.,—Gr. etymos, true, logia, an account.]

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Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of Etymology in Chaldean Numerology is: 8

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of Etymology in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Examples of Etymology in a Sentence

  1. Mike Kellen:

    Etymology, n.: Some early etymological scholars come up with derivations that were hard for the public to believe. The term "etymology" was formed from the Latin "etus" ("eaten"), the root "mal" ("bad"), and "logy" ("study of"). It meant "the study of things that are hard to swallow."

  2. RAS CARDO REGGAE:

    ***(C)(P) I WILL NOW GIVE A NEW WORD-PLANDEMIC- TO THE BOOKS OF ETYMOLOGY, ENCYCLOPEDIAS AND DICTIONARIES. IT REFERS TO THE WIDESPREAD PLANS OF SCAMS AND SCHEMES OF BABYLON SYSTEMS TO DESTROY AND TO DISCREDIT ALL THOSE WHO WITH RIGHTEOUS WORKS TRY TO ADVANCE THE IDEALS OF REGGAE AND RASTAFARI.

  3. Salman Rushdie:

    Names, once they are in common use, quickly become mere sounds, their etymology being buried, like so many of the earth's marvels, beneath the dust of habit.

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