Where does “oxymore” come from?

oxymore (French) comes from Latin oxymorus, from Ancient Greek ὀξύμωρος, from Ancient Greek μωρός, from Proto-Indo-European muHrós — dull, stupid.

oxymore (French): oxymoron figure of speech in which two words or phrases with opposing meanings are used together intentionally for effect

Definitions

  1. oxymoron figure of speech in which two words or phrases with opposing meanings are used together intentionally for effect

Ancestry of “oxymore”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinoxymorusoxymoronic; of or pertaining to a figure of...
2Ancient Greekὀξύμωροςpointedly foolish; oxymoronic
3Ancient Greekμωρόςslow, sluggish; slow, dull, foolish, stupid;...
4Proto-Indo-EuropeanmuHrósdull, stupid

Words derived from “oxymore”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European muHrós →Every word from Ancient Greek μωρός →Every word from Ancient Greek ὀξύμωρος →