*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of novel

From Middle English novel, from Old French novel (“new, fresh, recent, recently made or done, strange, rare”) (modern nouvel, nouveau), from Latin novellus (“new, fresh, young, modern”), diminutive of novus (“new”). Doub

4 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 4 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.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
adj

Newly made, formed or evolved; having no precedent; of recent origin; new. · Original, especially in an interesting way; new and striking; not of the typical or ordinary type.

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

From Middle English novel, from Old French novel (“new, fresh, recent, recently made or done, strange, rare”) (modern nouvel, nouveau), from Latin novellus (“new, fresh, young, modern”), diminutive of novus (“new”). Doublet of nouveau.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "root",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*new- (new)"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "novel"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English novel"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "novel",
        "4": "",
        "5": "new, fresh, recent, recently made or done, strange, rare"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French novel (“new, fresh, recent, recently made or done, strange, rare”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "novellus",
        "4": "",
        "5": "new, fresh, young, modern"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin novellus (“new, fresh, young, modern”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "nouveau"
      },
      "expansion": "Doublet of nouveau"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "novel",
      "novel#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "novel",
      "novel#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "nouvel",
      "nouvel#French"
    ],
    [
      "nouveau",
      "nouveau#French"
    ],
    [
      "novellus",
      "novellus#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "novus",
      "novus#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "nouveau",
      "nouveau#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "adj",
      "glosses": [
        "Newly made, formed or evolved; having no precedent; of recent origin; new.",
        "Original, especially in an interesting way; new and striking; not of the typical or ordinary type."
      ],
      "tags": [],
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A work of prose fiction, longer than a novella. · A fable; a short tale, especially one of many making up a larger work.

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

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *nu Proto-Indo-European *néwos Proto-Italic *nowos Latin novus Proto-Indo-European *-lós Proto-Indo-European *-elós Proto-Italic *-elos Latin -lus Latin -ellus Latin novellus Vulgar Latin *novella Italian novellabor. English novel Borrowed from Italian novella, from Latin novella, feminine of novellus. Doublet of novella.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "it:novella",
        "id": "novella",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *nu\nProto-Indo-European *néwos\nProto-Italic *nowos\nLatin novus\nProto-Indo-European *-lós\nProto-Indo-European *-elós\nProto-Italic *-elos\nLatin -lus\nLatin -ellus\nLatin novellus\nVulgar Latin *novella\nItalian novellabor.\nEnglish novel\n[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*nu\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" }, { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"new\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*new-\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" }, { \"id\" : \"athematic\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*-os\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"afeq\", \"is_invisible\" : \"all\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*néwos\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Italic\", \"term\" : \"*nowos\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"itc-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"novus\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la\" }, { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"diminutive\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"diminutive\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"alt\" : \"*-elós\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"agent nouns\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*-lós\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Italic\", \"term\" : \"*-elos\", \"lang\" : \"itc-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"-lus\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"-ellus\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"novellus\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Vulgar Latin\", \"term\" : \"*novella\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"la-vul\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Italian\", \"term\" : \"novella\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"it\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"novel\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"novella\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"novel\" id=\"English:_novella\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "it",
        "3": "novella"
      },
      "expansion": "Italian novella"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "novella"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin novella"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "novella"
      },
      "expansion": "Doublet of novella"
    },
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "it:novella",
        "id": "novella",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *nu\nProto-Indo-European *néwos\nProto-Italic *nowos\nLatin novus\nProto-Indo-European *-lós\nProto-Indo-European *-elós\nProto-Italic *-elos\nLatin -lus\nLatin -ellus\nLatin novellus\nVulgar Latin *novella\nItalian novellabor.\nEnglish novel"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*nu",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/nu"
    ],
    [
      "*néwos",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/néwos"
    ],
    [
      "*nowos",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Italic/nowos"
    ],
    [
      "novus",
      "novus#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "*-lós",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-lós#Proto-Indo-European:_agent_nouns"
    ],
    [
      "*-elos",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Italic/-elos#Proto-Italic:_diminutive"
    ],
    [
      "-lus",
      "-lus#Latin:_diminutive"
    ],
    [
      "-ellus",
      "-ellus#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "novellus",
      "novellus#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "*novella",
      "Reconstruction:Latin/novella"
    ],
    [
      "novella",
      "novella#Italian"
    ],
    [
      "novella",
      "novella#Italian"
    ],
    [
      "novella",
      "novella#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "novellus",
      "novellus#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "novella",
      "novella#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Bengali",
      "lang_code": "bn",
      "word": "নভেল",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "nobhel"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
      "lang_code": "gd",
      "word": "nobhail",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "Tamil",
      "lang_code": "ta",
      "word": "நாவல்",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "nāval"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Telugu",
      "lang_code": "te",
      "word": "నవల",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "navala"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Welsh",
      "lang_code": "cy",
      "word": "nofel",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
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        "A work of prose fiction, longer than a novella.",
        "A fable; a short tale, especially one of many making up a larger work."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "historical"
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
noun

A novelty; something new.

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

From Middle English novel, from Old French novelle, from Latin novella, feminine of novellus.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "novel"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English novel"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "novelle"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French novelle"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "novella"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin novella"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "novel",
      "novel#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "novelle",
      "novelle#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "novella",
      "novella#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "novellus",
      "novellus#Latin"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A novelty; something new."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "obsolete"
      ],
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Source etymology 4

Original entry ↗
noun

A new legal constitution.

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

Borrowed from Latin novella, feminine of novellus.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "bor+",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "novella"
      },
      "expansion": "Borrowed from Latin novella"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "novella",
      "novella#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "novellus",
      "novellus#Latin"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A new legal constitution."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Byzantine",
        "Roman",
        "historical"
      ],
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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 novel →

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
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Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-bm92ZWw