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electricity

Etymology and origin of the English word electricity

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1646
Ultimate origin
Ancient Greek (ἤλεκτρον)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English electric
English electrical
English electricity

Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˌel.ɪkˈtrɪs.ə.ti/, /ˌiː.lekˈtrɪs.ə.ti/, US /iˌlekˈtrɪs.ə.t̬i/[1]

Etymology

It is from English electric + -ity,[2][3][4] first used by the physician Sir Thomas Browne in 1646, from William Gilbert's Modern Latin.[5][4][2] Gilbert had used electricus in his treatise De Magnete (1600),[5] from Latin ēlectrum (“amber”), borrowed from Ancient Greek ἤλεκτρον (ḗlektron, “amber”),[5][4] because rubbing amber produces a charge that attracts light objects.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The power of attracting light bodies that amber and other substances have when rubbed: 1646 in the OED.[6][5] It was first used of friction.[2]

Semantic evolution

The branch of physics that studies it is from 1734.[6] A figurative use, excitement or tension, is from 1791.[6] Electric power supplied to buildings from a power station is from 1899.[6]

Timeline

  • 1600 – Gilbert's electricus.[5]
  • 1646 – electricity, in Browne.[6][5]
  • 1734 – the science.[6]
  • 1791 – figurative.[6]
  • 1899 – a power supply.[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A form of energy caused by the movement or presence of charged particles such as electrons.
  2. Electric power supplied for lighting, heating and machines.
  3. The science of these phenomena.
  4. Strong excitement or tension between people.

Word family

  • bioelectricity
  • electret
  • magnetoelectricity
  • pyroelectricity
  • triboelectricity
  • photoelectricity
  • piezoelectricity
  • thermoelectricity

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b c Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
Cite this entry

“Electricity.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/electricity. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·