Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “music” come from?

Music derives from Middle English musik, from Old French musique, from Latin musica, from Ancient Greek μουσική, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European dʰeh₁-.

music (English): A series of sounds organized in time, employing...

Definitions

  1. A series of sounds organized in time, employing...

Ancestry of “music”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishmusikAlternative form of musike
2Old Frenchmusiquemusic
3Italianmosaicomosaic, puzzle, jigsaw, jigsaw puzzle; mixture;...
4Latinmusaicum—
5Latinmusivummosaic
6Latinmūsēum—
7Ancient Greekμουσεῖονa home of music poetry; a museum, a...
8Ancient GreekμοῦσαAlternative letter-case form of Μοῦσᾰ; music,...

Words derived from “music”

  • musicology
  • ethnomusicology
  • musicologist
  • ethnomusicologist
  • musicking
  • musicmaking
  • musicing
  • miskin
  • musicless
  • nonmusic
  • musicker
  • musicscape
  • biomusic
  • musiclike
  • musicked
  • ethnomusicologically
  • micromusic
  • antimusic
  • musicography
  • ethnomusic
  • musicologic
  • music box
  • musicophile
  • musiczine
Every word from Ancient Greek μοῦσα →