Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “mimsy” come from?

mimsy (English) comes from English miserable, from Middle French miserable, from Latin miserabilis, from Latin -bilis, from Proto-Italic -ðlis, from Proto-Indo-European -dʰlis, from Proto-Indo-European -dʰlom — Alternative form of *-trom; instrumental suffix;...

mimsy (English): A nonce word in Lewis Carroll's "Jabberwocky"...

Definitions

  1. A nonce word in Lewis Carroll's "Jabberwocky"...

Ancestry of “mimsy”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishmiserableIn a state of misery: very sad, ill, or poor;...
2Middle Frenchmiserable—
3Latinmiserabilispitiable, miserable, deplorable, lamentable,...
4Latin-bilis-ble
5Proto-Italic-ðlis—
6Proto-Indo-European-dʰlis—
7Proto-Indo-European-dʰlomAlternative form of *-trom; instrumental suffix;...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -dʰlom →