etymology

American  

[et-uh-mol-uh-jee] / ˌɛt əˈmɒl ə dʒi /

noun

plural

etymologies

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 British  

/ 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

---

Other Word Forms

• etymologic adjective
• etymological adjective
• etymologically adverb
• etymologist noun
• pseudoetymological adjective
• pseudoetymologically adverb
• subetymology noun
• unetymologic adjective
• unetymological adjective
• unetymologically adverb

Etymology

Origin of etymology

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

Explanation

Since you're reading this, then you probably have some interest in etymology, because it's the study of the history and derivations of words. What genealogy is to a family, etymology is to words. A genealogist studies the history of a family. A person who studies etymology does the same thing with words. Etymology looks at the roots of words — for example, whether they started out as Latin, Greek, or as some other language — and how they took on their current meaning. When you learn that the -logy part of etymology almost always means "the study of," that is, in itself, etymology.

Example Sentences

For example, prompts that encourage models to think about word origins and structure using etymology lead to more unexpected associations and higher creativity scores.

From Science Daily • Jan. 25, 2026

The editors have also added sidebar features with etymology and trivia.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 19, 2025

As a child, Kim enjoyed looking up words in the dictionary and learning their etymology, a hobby that endured into adulthood.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 3, 2025

Not because those words aren’t fitting descriptors for Ani, but because she’s far more complex than a couple of attributes you can pull from the etymology section of a mommy blog.

From Salon • Oct. 18, 2024

Philology is related to the science of etymology, dealing in root words.

From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey