etymon
the literal or original meaning of a word
- SOUND
- English borrowed Latin etymon with learned spelling and English pronunciation.
- MEANING
- The source-word sense was retained and generalized across same-language, foreign-language, and derivational sources.
- CHRONOLOGY
- Merriam-Webster reports English use from 1573.
- SCHOLAR
- Merriam-Webster Editors
- CONFIDENCE
- established