Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “disarray” come from?

Disarray comes from Middle English disareyen, from Middle French desarroyer, from Old French desareer, formed with the prefix des- from Latin dis- (meaning "apart") and ex, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European de and dwóh₁.

disarray (English): To throw into disorder; to break the array of; To...

Definitions

  1. To throw into disorder; to break the array of; To...

Ancestry of “disarray”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishdisareyento disarray
2Middle Frenchdesarroyer—
3Old Frenchdesareer—
4Old Frenchareerto array; to put in order

Words derived from “disarray”

  • disarrayment
Every word from Old French areer →