Etymologically
Log in

elaborate

Etymology and origin of the English word elaborate

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1581
Borrowed from
Latin elaboratus
Ultimate origin
Latin (elaboratus)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ɪˈlæb.(ə.)ɹət/, /ɪˈlæb.ə.ɹeɪt/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin ēlabōrātus, the past participle of ēlabōrāre, to work out, exert oneself, acquire by labour,[2][3][4] from ē-, out, and labor, work (see labour).[3][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Produced or accomplished by labour: 1592 in the OED and Merriam-Webster, the 1590s in Etymonline;[6][4][2] the participle use is from 1581.[6]

Semantic evolution

Worked out in great detail, highly finished, is from 1621 (the 1620s),[6][2] from the idea of something produced with great care.[2] Of an investigation, conducted with great minuteness, it is from 1649.[6] The verb, to build up from simple elements, produce by labour, is from about 1600 (1611 in the OED),[2][6] to work out in detail from the 1610s,[2] and to explain in detail, enlarge on a subject, from 1934.[6] Blount's Glossographia (1656) has elaboratory, a workhouse.[2]

Timeline

  • 1592 – produced by labour.[6]
  • 1611 – to produce by labour (verb).[6]
  • 1621 – highly detailed.[6]
  • 1656 – elaboratory.[2]
  • 1934 – to explain in detail.[6]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Planned or carried out with great attention to detail.
  2. Intricate, complex or ornate.

Verb

  1. To give more detail; to expand on something.
  2. To work out carefully and in detail; to develop.
  3. To produce by effort.

Word family

  • elaborately
  • elaborateness
  • elaboration
  • elaborator
  • elaborative
  • superelaborate
  • unelaborate
  • overelaborate

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  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

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Elaborate.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/elaborate. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·