Where does “hilarious” come from?

Hilarious comes from Latin hilaris, derived from Ancient Greek ἱλαρός, which itself comes from Ancient Greek ἵλαος.

hilarious (English): Very funny; causing great merriment and laughter;...

Definitions

  1. Very funny; causing great merriment and laughter;...

Ancestry of “hilarious”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinhilarischeerful, lively, light-hearted, merry
2Ancient Greekἱλαρόςcheerful, merry, joyous, glad, happy
3Ancient Greekἵλαοςpropitious, gracious, merciful; kind, mild,...
4Proto-Indo-Europeansēlh₂-to calm, quiet, be favourable

Words derived from “hilarious”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European sēlh₂- →Every word from Ancient Greek ἵλαος →Every word from Ancient Greek ἱλαρός →