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abundance

Etymology and origin of the English word abundance

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1340
Borrowed from
Old French abundance via Middle English
Ultimate origin
Latin (abundō)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /əˈbʌn.dn̩s/ (UK); /əˈbʌn.dn̩s/, /əˈbʌn.dn̩ts/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English aboundance, borrowed from Old French abundance,[2][3][4] from Latin abundantia (“fullness, plenty”),[2][3] from abundāns (“overflowing”), the present participle of abundō (“to overflow”) (see abound).[3][4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

An overflowing quantity, plenty: 1340, in Ayenbite of Inwyt, in Barnhart and the OED.[2][6]

Semantic evolution

Some writers of the 14th and 15th centuries borrowed directly from Latin,[2] and the form habundance was common in the 14th century.[2][7] An overflowing state is from 1366,[6] plenty of the good things of life, affluence, from 1382,[6] and loosely a great number from 1375.[6] In solo whist, abundance is a declaration to take nine tricks, from 1888,[6] and in ecology and physics it is the relative amount of a species or element, from the early 20th century.[6][8]

Timeline

  • 1340 – a plentiful amount.[2][6]
  • 1366 – overflowing state.[6]
  • 1382 – affluence.[6]
  • 1888 – abundance in solo whist.[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A very large quantity; plenty.
  2. Fullness to overflowing: from the abundance of my heart.
  3. Affluence; wealth.
  4. (chemistry, ecology) The relative amount of an element or species in a place.

Word family

  • overabundance
  • abound
  • abundant
  • undulate
  • redundant

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Abundance.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/abundance. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·