Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “joy” come from?

Joy comes from Old French joie, from Latin iocus meaning "jest" or "joke," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European yek-.

joy (English): A feeling of extreme happiness or cheerfulness,...

Definitions

  1. A feeling of extreme happiness or cheerfulness,...

Ancestry of “joy”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchjoiejoy
2EnglishJoy—
3Middle Englishjoyejoy; elation; gaiety
4Old Frenchjoiejoy; Alternative form of jouel
5Latingaudianominative plural of gaudium; accusative plural...
6Latingaudiumjoy, delight
7Latin-iumSuffix used to form abstract nouns, sometimes...
8Latin-iusforming adjectives from nouns; nominative neuter...
9Proto-Italic-jōsForms comparative adjectives
10Proto-Indo-European-yósCreates adjectives from noun or verb stems

Words derived from “joy”

  • joyful
  • joyfully
  • joyless
  • joystick
  • joyfulness
  • joyance
  • joyride
  • killjoy
  • joylessness
  • joylessly
  • overjoy
  • joyrider
  • joysome
  • joypad
  • unjoyful
  • joyant
  • joyfuller
  • joysticklike
  • joyness
  • unjoy
  • joyish
  • unjoyfulness
  • joylike
  • joysomeness
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -yós →