*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of balmy

From balm + -y. Piecewise doublet of balsamic.

1 source sectionBrief source recordWiktionary 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 ↗
adj

Producing balm. · Soothing or fragrant. · Of weather, mild and pleasant. · Foolish; slightly crazy or mad; eccentric.

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

From balm + -y. Piecewise doublet of balsamic.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "suffix",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "balm",
        "3": "y"
      },
      "expansion": "balm + -y"
    },
    {
      "name": "pwd",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "balsamic"
      },
      "expansion": "Piecewise doublet of balsamic"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "balm",
      "balm#English"
    ],
    [
      "-y",
      "-y#English"
    ],
    [
      "balsamic",
      "balsamic#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "adj",
      "glosses": [
        "Producing balm.",
        "Soothing or fragrant.",
        "Of weather, mild and pleasant.",
        "Foolish; slightly crazy or mad; eccentric."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "informal"
      ],
      "recordId": "17260a6ac19400a5f46b79e17385c4a87f2dbdaa4c1b2fb6284024545100f720",
      "rawRecordSha256": "2f6fab6fd2a50c8afa1fc8f3dd986cdd354a1812968089d6c357ec9d2f3955ad",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 225585
    }
  ],
  "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 balmy →

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-YmFsbXk