Etimologically

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. Referring to the study of the origin and historical development of words, including their changes in form and meaning over time
2. Pertaining to the branch of linguistics that investigates the derivation and evolution of vocabulary and how their meanings have transformed
3. Relating to the exploration of word origins and the ways in which their meanings and forms have shifted throughout history

Etymology: The Greek noun "etymon" meant "true sense" or "literal meaning," from "etymos," meaning "true" or "real." Greek scholars believed that tracing a word back to its origin would reveal what it truly meant, so the study of origins was treated as a way of uncovering hidden truth in language. The second element, "-logia," means "study" or "discourse," as in "biology." The Greek parts passed through Latin into French and then into English, where "etymological" came to describe anything relating to this study. Adding "-ly" turns it into an adverb, so something examined "etymologically" is analysed through its origins. The standard spelling has a "y" after the "m," which is easy to miss.

Synonyms: linguistically, historically