etymon

American  

[et-uh-mon] / ˈɛt əˌmɒn /

noun

plural

etymons, etyma

1. the linguistic form from which another form is historically derived, as the Latin cor “heart,” which is the etymon of English cordial, or the Indo-European *ḱ (e ) rd-, which is the etymon of Latin cor, Greek kardía, Russian serdtse, and English heart.

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etymon British  

/ ˈɛtɪˌmɒn /

noun

1. a form of a word or morpheme, usually the earliest recorded form or a reconstructed form, from which another word or morpheme is derived: the etymon of English "ewe" is Indo-European " * owi"

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Etymology

Origin of etymon

1560–70; < Latin: the origin of a word < Greek étymon the essential meaning of a word seen in its origin or traced to its grammatical parts (neuter of étymos true, actual, real)

Example Sentences

The etymon is in old English wrestling�to have on the hip; to render an opponent powerless because tractionless.

From Time Magazine Archive

His belief in a common etymon might be somewhat strengthened by a quotation from a "Journal of What Occurred between the French and Savages," kept during the years 1657-58.

From A Sketch of the History of Oneonta by Campbell, Dudley M.

It happens, perhaps yet more frequently, that a German name, which cannot be explained by anything within the range of Teutonic dialects, may find a sufficient etymon from the Celtic.

From Surnames as a Science by Ferguson, Robert

Hence the locality was termed by them Cold Harbour, corrupted, Cădhārber, and the etymon remains to this day.

From Notes and Queries, Number 51, October 19, 1850 by Various

Was and wast, are the same as were and wert in meaning, being derived from the same etymon.

From Lectures on Language As Particularly Connected with English Grammar. by Balch, William Stevens