*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of -ology

Etymology tree Ancient Greek -ο- (-o-)der. Latin -o-bor. English -o- Ancient Greek -λογῐ́ᾱ (-logĭ́ā)bor. Latin -logialbor. French -logiebor. English -logy English -ology From -o- (interconsonantal vowel) + -logy.

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
suffix

Alternative form of -logy, used for phonological reasons when the preceding morpheme ends in certain consonant sounds. · added to an ordinary English word to create a name for a (possibly non-existent) field of study.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Ancient Greek -ο- (-o-)der. Latin -o-bor. English -o- Ancient Greek -λογῐ́ᾱ (-logĭ́ā)bor. Latin -logialbor. French -logiebor. English -logy English -ology From -o- (interconsonantal vowel) + -logy.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "-o-<pos:interconsonantal vowel><id:connective>",
        "4": "-logy",
        "nocat": "1",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nAncient Greek -ο- (-o-)der.\nLatin -o-bor.\nEnglish -o-\nAncient Greek -λογῐ́ᾱ (-logĭ́ā)bor.\nLatin -logialbor.\nFrench -logiebor.\nEnglish -logy\nEnglish -ology\n[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"connective\", \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"der.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Derived from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"connective\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang_name\" : \"Ancient Greek\", \"term\" : \"-ο-\", \"lang\" : \"grc\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"-o-\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"-o-\", \"lang\" : \"en\", \"pos\" : \"interconsonantal vowel\" }, { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"bor.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Borrowed from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"branch of study\", \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"lbor.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Learned borrowing from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"study\", \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"bor.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Borrowed from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"study\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang_name\" : \"Ancient Greek\", \"term\" : \"-λογῐ́ᾱ\", \"lang\" : \"grc\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"-logia\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"lbor\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"French\", \"term\" : \"-logie\", \"lang\" : \"fr\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"-logy\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"-ology\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"-ology\">\nFrom -o- (interconsonantal vowel) + -logy."
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "['-o-<pos:', <LINK(['interconsonantal']){} >, ' vowel><id:connective>']",
        "4": "-logy",
        "nocat": "1",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nAncient Greek -ο- (-o-)der.\nLatin -o-bor.\nEnglish -o-\nProto-Indo-European *leǵ-\nProto-Indo-European *-os\nProto-Indo-European *lóǵos\nProto-Hellenic *lógos\nAncient Greek λόγος (lógos)\nProto-Indo-European *-h₂\nProto-Indo-European *-éh₂\nProto-Indo-European *-i-eh₂\nProto-Hellenic *-íā\nAncient Greek -ῐ́ᾱ (-ĭ́ā)\nAncient Greek -λογῐ́ᾱ (-logĭ́ā)bor.\nLatin -logialbor.\nFrench -logiebor.\nEnglish -logy\nEnglish -ology\nFrom -o- (interconsonantal vowel) + -logy."
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "-ο-",
      "-ο-#Ancient_Greek:_connective"
    ],
    [
      "-o-",
      "-o-#Latin:_connective"
    ],
    [
      "-o-",
      "-o-#English:_connective"
    ],
    [
      "-λογῐ́ᾱ",
      "-λογία#Ancient_Greek:_study"
    ],
    [
      "-logia",
      "-logia#Latin:_study"
    ],
    [
      "-logie",
      "-logie#French:_branch_of_study"
    ],
    [
      "-logy",
      "-logy#English"
    ],
    [
      "interconsonantal",
      "interconsonantal"
    ],
    [
      "-o-",
      "-o-#English:_connective"
    ],
    [
      "interconsonantal",
      "interconsonantal"
    ],
    [
      "-logy",
      "-logy#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "suffix",
      "glosses": [
        "Alternative form of -logy, used for phonological reasons when the preceding morpheme ends in certain consonant sounds.",
        "added to an ordinary English word to create a name for a (possibly non-existent) field of study."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "alt-of",
        "alternative",
        "morpheme",
        "humorous",
        "often"
      ],
      "recordId": "bad67e435123998b999b970ab22d287280fd36497aacd79c743d47f2081527ed",
      "rawRecordSha256": "2aab64670d1495240939621de7e542acf6d7e35e085c6ff7e7fc51dfd86125eb",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 183823
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for -ology →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-LW9sb2d5