Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “edify” come from?

Edify comes from Old French edifier, from Latin aedificare, from Latin aedifico, from Latin aedes meaning building or dwelling.

edify (English): To build, construct; To instruct or improve...

Definitions

  1. To build, construct; To instruct or improve...

Ancestry of “edify”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchedifierto build, to edify
2Latinaedificāre—
3Latinaedēs—
4Proto-Italicaiðes—
5Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂éydʰ-s—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂eydʰ-to ignite; fire

Words derived from “edify”

  • edifying
  • edified
  • unedifying
  • edifieth
  • edifyingly
  • edifier
  • reedify
  • disedify
  • edifiest
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂eydʰ- →