Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “reality” come from?

Reality derives from French réalité, from Middle French realité, from Latin -tās (noun-forming suffix) and -ālis (adjective-forming suffix) attached to a root from Proto-Indo-European reh₁ís, with -tós forming the participial adjective.

reality (English): The state of being actual or real; A real entity,...

Definitions

  1. The state of being actual or real; A real entity,...

Ancestry of “reality”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchréalitéreality
2Middle Frenchrealitéproperty, possession
3Medieval Latinrealitasreality
4Late Latinrealisactual; real, actual
5Latinrēs—
6Latinvindicatiocivil lawsuit; protection, defence; vindication;...
7Latinvindicō—
8Latinvindexclaimant, vindicator
9Latindīcō—
10Latin-tiō—
11Latindissertātiō—
12Latindissertusarranged, disposed; explained
13Latindissereresecond-person singular future passive indicative...
14Latindis-asunder, apart, in two; reversal, removal;...
15Latincalceusshoe
16Latincalxlimestone; chalk; the finish line
17Ancient Greekχάλιξsmall stone, pebble; gravel, rubble

Words derived from “reality”

  • unreality
  • hyperreality
  • irreality
  • nonreality
  • pseudoreality
  • superreality
  • semireality
  • macroreality
  • antireality
  • neoreality
  • telereality
  • cyberreality
  • virtual reality
  • reality
  • バーチャルリアリティ
Every word from Ancient Greek χάλιξ →