Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “palliative” come from?

Palliative comes from Middle French palliatif, from Latin palliare meaning "to cloak or conceal," derived from Latin pallium meaning "cloak."

palliative (English): Serving to palliate; serving to extenuate or...

Definitions

  1. Serving to palliate; serving to extenuate or...

Ancestry of “palliative”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Frenchpalliatif—
2New Latinpalliativus—
3Latinpalliatusdressed in a pallium, cloaked; covered, protected
4Latinpalliumcloak; coverlet

Words derived from “palliative”

  • palliatively
  • nonpalliative
Every word from Latin pallium →