*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of title

Etymology tree Etruscanbor.? Latin titulusbor. Old English titul Middle English title English title From Middle English title, titel, from Old English titul (“title, heading, superscription”), from Latin titulus (“title,

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 2 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 · variant 1/2

Original entry ↗
noun

The name of a film, musical piece, painting, or other work of art. · The name of a writing such as a book, which identifies it and usually describes its subject, with a short phrase that often summarizes its topic. · A published piece of media. · A section or division of a writing, as of an act of law or a book.

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

Etymology tree Etruscanbor.? Latin titulusbor. Old English titul Middle English title English title From Middle English title, titel, from Old English titul (“title, heading, superscription”), from Latin titulus (“title, inscription”). Doublet of tilde, titer/titre, titlo, tittle, and titulus.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

This page abbreviates 9 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:title<ety:inh<ang:titul>>",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nEtruscanbor.?\nLatin titulusbor.\nOld English titul\nMiddle English title\nEnglish title\n[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"bor.\", \"is_uncertain\" : true, \"keyword_label\" : \"Borrowed from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"lang_name\" : \"Etruscan\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"children\" : [ ], \"lang\" : \"ett\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"titulus\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"titul\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"title\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"title\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"title\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "title"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English title"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "titul",
        "4": "",
        "5": "title, heading, superscription"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English titul (“title, heading, superscription”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "titulus",
        "4": "",
        "5": "title, inscription"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin titulus (“title, inscription”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "tilde",
        "3": "titer/titre",
        "4": "titlo",
        "5": "tittle",
        "6": "titulus"
      },
      "expansion": "Doublet of tilde, titer/titre, titlo, tittle, and titulus"
    },
    {
      "name": "etymon",
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        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
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      },
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    }
  ],
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    ],
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    ],
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      "title",
      "title#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "title",
      "title#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "titel",
      "titel#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "titul",
      "titul#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "titulus",
      "titulus#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "tilde",
      "tilde#English"
    ],
    [
      "titer",
      "titer#English"
    ],
    [
      "titre",
      "titre#English"
    ],
    [
      "titlo",
      "titlo#English"
    ],
    [
      "tittle",
      "tittle#English"
    ],
    [
      "titulus",
      "titulus#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Wu",
      "lang_code": "wuu",
      "word": "抬頭",
      "raw_tags": [
        "reshaped by analogy or addition of morphemes"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Traditional-Chinese"
      ],
      "roman": "⁶de-deu"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Wu",
      "lang_code": "wuu",
      "word": "抬头",
      "raw_tags": [
        "reshaped by analogy or addition of morphemes"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Simplified-Chinese"
      ],
      "roman": "⁶de-deu"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "lang_code": "ja",
      "word": "タイトル",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "taitoru"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Korean",
      "lang_code": "ko",
      "word": "타이틀",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "taiteul"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Russian",
      "lang_code": "ru",
      "word": "тайтл",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "tajtl"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Welsh",
      "lang_code": "cy",
      "word": "teitl",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "The name of a film, musical piece, painting, or other work of art.",
        "The name of a writing such as a book, which identifies it and usually describes its subject, with a short phrase that often summarizes its topic.",
        "A published piece of media.",
        "A section or division of a writing, as of an act of law or a book."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "broadly"
      ],
      "recordId": "a9cb60b4d01374a26442c7c54cb0d8ec707b369ca5f5bc500094fe832952f9ac",
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    }
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  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
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    "lexicalSenses": 9,
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  }
}

Unnumbered source etymology · variant 2/2

Original entry ↗
intj

Used in the body of a post to indicate that the title has already said all that needs to be said.

verb

To assign a title to; to entitle.

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

Etymology tree Etruscanbor.? Latin titulusbor. Old English titul Middle English title English title From Middle English title, titel, from Old English titul (“title, heading, superscription”), from Latin titulus (“title, inscription”). Doublet of tilde, titer/titre, titlo, tittle, and titulus.

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.

{
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    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:title<ety:inh<ang:titul>>",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nEtruscanbor.?\nLatin titulusbor.\nOld English titul\nMiddle English title\nEnglish title\n[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"bor.\", \"is_uncertain\" : true, \"keyword_label\" : \"Borrowed from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"lang_name\" : \"Etruscan\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"children\" : [ ], \"lang\" : \"ett\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"titulus\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"titul\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"title\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"title\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"title\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "title"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English title"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "titul",
        "4": "",
        "5": "title, heading, superscription"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English titul (“title, heading, superscription”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "titulus",
        "4": "",
        "5": "title, inscription"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin titulus (“title, inscription”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "tilde",
        "3": "titer/titre",
        "4": "titlo",
        "5": "tittle",
        "6": "titulus"
      },
      "expansion": "Doublet of tilde, titer/titre, titlo, tittle, and titulus"
    },
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:title<ety:inh<ang:titul>>",
        "tree": "1"
      },
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    }
  ],
  "links": [
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    ],
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    ],
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      "title",
      "title#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "title",
      "title#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "titel",
      "titel#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "titul",
      "titul#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "titulus",
      "titulus#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "tilde",
      "tilde#English"
    ],
    [
      "titer",
      "titer#English"
    ],
    [
      "titre",
      "titre#English"
    ],
    [
      "titlo",
      "titlo#English"
    ],
    [
      "tittle",
      "tittle#English"
    ],
    [
      "titulus",
      "titulus#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "intj",
      "glosses": [
        "Used in the body of a post to indicate that the title has already said all that needs to be said."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Internet"
      ],
      "recordId": "76e59a6052f93bde67e4555b33aca5309035717cb7142de4c615be4b06c8cf71",
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    },
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To assign a title to; to entitle."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive"
      ],
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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 title →

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-dGl0bGU