Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “pejorate” come from?

pejorate (English) comes from Latin peioro, from Latin peior, from Latin malus, from Ancient Greek μηλέα, from Ancient Greek μῆλον, from Proto-Indo-European (s)meh₁l- — small animal”; small animal.

pejorate (English): To make or become worse; to deteriorate or to...

Definitions

  1. To make or become worse; to deteriorate or to...

Ancestry of “pejorate”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1LatinpeioroI make worse; I aggravate
2Latinpeiorworse
3Latinmalusunpleasant, distressing, painful, nasty, bad;...
4Ancient Greekμηλέα—
5Ancient Greekμῆλονapple; any fruit from a tree; a woman's breast
6Proto-Indo-European(s)meh₁l-small animal”; small animal
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)meh₁l- →