Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “amulet” come from?

Amulet derives from Middle French amulette, from Latin amuletum, from Latin amylum meaning "starch," from Ancient Greek ἄμυλον, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European roots meaning "not" and "to grind."

amulet (English): A kind of protective charm or ornament, often...

Definitions

  1. A kind of protective charm or ornament, often...

Ancestry of “amulet”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Frenchamulette—
2Latinamuletuman amulet
3Latinamylumstarch; gruel; fine meal
4Ancient Greekἄμυλονinflection of ἀμύλος : ## masculine accusative...
5Ancient Greekἀ-The alpha privativum, used to make words that...
6Proto-Hellenichə-same; together
7Proto-Indo-Europeansm̥-one; with, together
8Proto-Indo-Europeansem-together, one

Words derived from “amulet”

  • amuletic
  • amuletlike
  • amuleto
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sem- →