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gem

Etymology and origin of the English word gem

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
c. 1300
Borrowed from
Old French gemme via Middle English
Ultimate origin
Latin (gemma)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /d͡ʒɛm/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English gemme, borrowed from Old French gemme,[2][3][4] from Latin gemma (“bud; precious stone, jewel”),[2][3][4] from Proto-Italic *gebma- (“bud, sprout”), related to Lithuanian žembėti (“to sprout”).[3][2] The PIE root is uncertain: Watkins proposes Proto-Indo-European *ǵembʰ- (“tooth, nail”), others a root meaning to press.[3] It replaced Old English ġimm, borrowed earlier from the same Latin word.[2][4][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

A precious stone: about 825 in the OED, for the Old English word;[5] the French-derived gemme before 1300 in Barnhart, about 1300 in Etymonline.[2][3] Forms like iemme, gimme persisted into the 14th century.[3][2]

Semantic evolution

Of a person, a rare or excellent example, it is from the late 13th century (about 1275).[3][5] A bud, especially a leaf bud, is from 1382, now obsolete.[5][2] An object of rare beauty or worth, the choicest part of something, is from about 1560,[5] and an engraved stone from 1638.[5] The verb, to adorn with gems, is from about 1600 (1610 in Barnhart),[3][2] and gemstone is from about 1000.[2]

Timeline

  • c. 825 – ġimm, a precious stone.[5]
  • c. 1000 – gemstone.[2]
  • c. 1275 – a person of excellence.[5]
  • before 1300 – gemme.[2]
  • 1382 – a bud (obsolete).[5]
  • 1610 – to gem, adorn.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A precious or semiprecious stone, especially one cut and polished for jewellery; a jewel.
  2. A person or thing of great worth or beauty; a treasure.
  3. A kind of small cake or muffin.

Verb

  1. To adorn with gems.

Word family

  • gemless
  • gemlike
  • begem
  • gemmy
  • gemology
  • gemstone
  • gem clip
  • Gem State
  • gemma
  • gemmology
  • gemmation

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ 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

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Gem.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/gem. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·