etymos

Etymós is a Greek adjective meaning true or real. In classical Greek, it was used to describe the true sense or real meaning of a word. The related noun étýmon (etymon) referred to the original or true form of a word from which later forms develop, a concept that underpins much of linguistic etymology.

In modern linguistics, etymon denotes the original form or root of a word, from which later descendants evolve. Etymology is the study of word origins, including how their forms and meanings have changed over time and how etymons are related across languages. The English terms are ultimately derived from Greek, with etymology tracing back to the Greek etymología, which itself incorporates étýmon as the notion of a true or original sense.

The distinction between etymos and etymon is largely a matter of linguistic terminology. Etymós is the Greek adjective meaning true, while etymon is the technical term used in philology to describe the source form of a word. In English scholarly usage, etymon is the standard term; etymós appears primarily in discussions of Greek etymology or as a linguistic root rather than as a separate technical concept in contemporary linguistics.

Usage notes: the concept of an etymon is central to reconstructive and historical linguistics, where researchers identify original forms and trace semantic and phonological changes across languages. The study of etymology often involves citing etymons to explain how modern words arrived at their current meanings.

See also: etymology, linguistic reconstruction, historical linguistics, Greek language.