Definition of ETYMOLOGY

etymology

Meanings

Plural: etymologies

Noun

  • a history of a word
  • the study of the sources and development of words
  • The scientific study of the origin and evolution of a word's semantic meaning across time, including its constituent morphemes and phonemes.
  • The entire catalogue of meanings that a word, morpheme, or sign has carried throughout its history.
  • An account of the origin and historical development of a word as presented in a dictionary or the like.
  • The direct origin of a name, as in who someone was named after.

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English ethymologie, from Old French ethimologie, from Latin etymologia, from Ancient Greek ἐτυμολογία (etumología), from ἔτυμον (étumon, “true sense”) and -λογία (-logía, “study or logic of”), from λόγος (lógos, “word; explanation”).

Synonyms

derivation

Scrabble Score: 18

etymology is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
etymology is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
etymology is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 19

etymology is a valid Words With Friends word