etymologystudy of the history of wordsNot to be confused with:entomology ? scientific study of insectsAbused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embreeet·y·mol·o·gy (?t??-m?l??-j?)n. pl. et·y·mol·o·gies 1. The origin and historical development of a linguistic form as shown by determining its basic elements, earliest known use, and changes in form and meaning, tracing its transmission from one language to another, identifying its cognates in other languages, and reconstructing its ancestral form where possible.2. The branch of linguistics that deals with etymologies.[Middle English etimologie, from Old French ethimologie, from Medieval Latin ethimologia, from Latin etymologia, from Greek etumologi? : etumon, true sense of a word; see etymon + -logi?, -logy.]American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.etymology (??t??m?l?d??) n, pl -gies1. (Linguistics) the study of the sources and development of words and morphemes2. (Linguistics) an account of the source and development of a word or morpheme[C14: via Latin from Greek etumologia; see etymon, -logy] etymological adj ?etymo?logically adv ?ety?mologist nCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014et?y?mol?o?gy (??t ??m?l ? d?i) n., pl. -gies. 1. the history of a particular word or element of a word. 2. an account of the origin and development of a word or word element. 3. the study of historical linguistic change, esp. as manifested in individual words. [1350?1400; Middle English