etymological

American  

[et-uh-muh-lahj-ik-uhl] / ˌɛt ə məˈlɑdʒ ɪk əl /

adjective

1. of or relating to etymology.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• etymologically
  adverb
• unetymological
  adjective
• nonetymological
  adjective

Explanation

Something etymological relates to the way a word originated. You can look up a word's roots and the history of how it came to get its meaning in an etymological dictionary. Etymology is the history of words, including the way they've changed through the years. The adjective etymological describes anything that has to do with etymology. Etymological research of English words often leads back to Old English, Greek, or Latin roots. The etymological origin of etymological, in fact, is Greek: the root word etymologia means "study of the true sense of a word."

Example Sentences

So let us put this down as etymological overreach by Mr. Dalrymple.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026

The effect becomes increasingly oppressive as the arguments wax and wane, about everything from the etymological difference between “leaving” and “fleeing” to the nature of forgiveness.

From Washington Post • Jan. 4, 2023

“For the Calendar, I wanted to go back to the etymological root of the word ‘muse’.

From Reuters • Nov. 16, 2022

The word was used as early as the 16th century by European travelers in the East Indies, and it may have etymological origins in Arabic, Chinese, Greek and Urdu.

From New York Times • Nov. 2, 2022

The Reverend William Whewell, an influential man, objected on etymological grounds and suggested instead an "–eous" pattern, producing Meioneous, Pleioneous, and so on.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson

Related Words

• grammatical