Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “vegetarianism” come from?

Vegetarianism derives from English vegetarian, which comes from English vegetable, from Latin vegetabilis meaning "capable of growing," from Latin vegetus meaning "lively" or "vigorous," from Latin vegeo meaning "to enliven."

vegetarianism (English): The practice of following a vegetarian diet

Definitions

  1. The practice of following a vegetarian diet

Ancestry of “vegetarianism”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishvegetarianA person who does not eat animal flesh, or, in...
2EnglishvegetableAny plant; A plant raised for some edible part of...
3Middle Englishvegetable—
4Old Frenchvegetable—
5Latinvegetabilisanimating, enlivening, vivifying; able to produce...
6LatinvegetoI arouse, enliven, quicken, animate, invigorate;...
7Latinvegetusenlivened, lively, animated, vigorous, active,...
8LatinvegeoI move, excite, quicken, arouse; I am lively or...
9Proto-Italicwegeōto be active, lively
10Proto-Italicwegejō—
11Proto-Indo-Europeanwoǵ-éye-—
12Proto-Indo-Europeanweǵ-lively, awake; strong

Words derived from “vegetarianism”

  • semivegetarianism
Every word from Proto-Indo-European weǵ- →