elemental

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English elementall,^[2] borrowed from Medieval Latin elementalis,^{[3][4][5][2][6]} from Latin elementum (“rudiment, first principle”),^[3][5] the source of element, with the suffix -al.^[2][4] The OED, whose entry has not been fully revised, treats it instead as formed in English from element and -al.^[7] Etymonline describes the origin and original sense of the Latin noun as unknown.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Relating to the four elements, earth, air, fire and water: Etymonline and the Shorter Oxford date it to the late 15th century,^[3][4] Dictionary.com to 1485–95,^[6] and the OED's first quotation is from John Rastell's play of the four elements, about 1520.^[7]

Semantic evolution

In the 16th century the adjective took several senses tied to the old theory of elements: "composed of the elements, material" (1574–1646), "relating to the sky, governed by celestial influences" (1527–1628), and of fire, "material, physical" as opposed to spiritual (1533–1755); all are now obsolete.^[7][4][2] Two lasting senses grew from element as an ultimate part: "simple, uncompounded, constituent" from 1555 and "essential, integral" from 1639.^[7][4] The sense "rudimentary, relating to first principles" (1577) is now rare, having passed to elementary.^[7][4] Johnson (1755) gave "produced by some of the four elements" and "arising from first principles".^[8] The meaning "relating to the forces of nature" appeared in the 1820s, in Shelley's Prometheus Unbound and in Leigh Hunt, who also used it figuratively for anything comparable to those forces;^[7][3] Etymonline dates it to 1823.^[3] The noun, an occult spirit or force that can produce physical effects, comes from Helena Blavatsky's Isis Unveiled (1877).^[7][3]

Timeline

• late 15th century – relating to the four elements.^[3][4]
• c. 1520 – first OED quotation, in John Rastell.^[7]
• 1527–1628 – relating to the sky (obsolete).^[7][4]
• 1555 – simple, uncompounded, constituent.^[7]
• 1577 – rudimentary, elementary (now rare).^[7]
• 1639 – essential, integral.^[7][4]
• 1820 – relating to the forces of nature; figurative, comparable to them.^[7]
• 1877 – noun, an occult spirit or force.^[7][3]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Basic and fundamental; primal: the elemental need for shelter.^[9][2]
2. Relating to, caused by, or like the great forces of nature: The storm struck with elemental fury.^[2][9][7]
3. Relating to earth, air, fire and water, regarded as the four elements.^[9][7][4]
4. Relating to the weather, especially wind, rain and cold.^[9]
5. (chemistry) Relating to or consisting of a chemical element in uncombined form: elemental sulphur.^[9][4]
6. (obsolete) Material or physical, as opposed to spiritual.^[2][7][4]

Noun

1. A spirit or force that is thought to appear in physical form.^[9][2][4]
2. A basic principle; a rudiment (usually plural).^[2]

Word family

• elementally
• nonelemental
• unelemental

Related words

• element
• elementary

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ a b Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
9. ^ a b c d e f Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins