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generous

Etymology and origin of the English word generous

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1583
Borrowed from
Middle French généreux
Ultimate origin
Latin (genus)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin generosus
English generous

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈd͡ʒɛn(ə)ɹəs/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French généreux or directly borrowed from Latin generosus (“of noble birth; magnanimous”),[2][3][4] from genus (“race, stock”) (genitive generis) (see genus),[2][3] from PIE Proto-Indo-European *gene- (“to give birth, beget”).[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of noble birth, and so noble in spirit: 1588, in Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost;[2][5] 1583 in MWU.[4]

Semantic evolution

NODE traces the development from noble birth to the qualities thought natural to it: courage and magnanimity, then liberality.[6] Of animals, of good breed, is from 1607 and obsolete.[5] Plentiful, abundant, is from the 1610s,[3] and free in giving from 1696, probably after earlier French;[2][5] both senses were already present in French and Latin.[3] Of wine, rich and full-bodied, is a further use.[7]

Timeline

  • 1583 – first use (MWU).[4]
  • 1588 – of noble birth.[2][5]
  • 1610s – plentiful.[3]
  • 1696 – free in giving.[2][5]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Willing to give money, help or time freely; liberal.
  2. Larger or more plentiful than usual; ample: a generous helping.
  3. Kind and fair in judging others; magnanimous.

Word family

  • generously
  • generousness
  • overgenerous
  • supergenerous
  • ungenerous

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 d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Generous.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/generous. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·