etymology

About 1.07 uses per million words.

Meaning

1. noun The scientific study of the origin and evolution of a word's semantic meaning across time, including its constituent morphemes and phonemes.
2. noun The entire catalogue of meanings that a word, morpheme, or sign has carried throughout its history.

   Although written the same, the words lead (the metal) and lead (the verb) have totally different etymologies.

3. noun An account of the origin and historical development of a word as presented in a dictionary or the like.
4. noun The direct origin of a name, as in who someone was named after.

Similar words

etimology etymologist etymography semantics etymological argument morphology semantician derivation morphemics surface analysis

Often followed by

of and is for in to as has or

Word family

etymological etymologically etymologies