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majestic

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Etymology and origin of the English word majestic

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1606 J. Davies, Bien Venu
Ultimate origin
Latin magnus
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English majesty
English majestic

Pronunciation

  • /məˈd͡ʒɛstɪk/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English majesty + -ic.[2][3][4][5] It followed the earlier majestical, recorded from the 1570s,[3][2] and the classically more correct majestatic (1650s) is now archaic or obsolete.[3] Majesty is from Old French majeste (“grandeur, nobility”),[3][2] from Latin maiestās (“greatness, dignity”),[3][2] formed on the base of maior (“greater”), the comparative of magnus (“great”).[3][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of things, having imposing dignity or grandeur: 1606, in J. Davies's Bien Venu; of persons the next year, in Dekker's The Whore of Babylon.[2] Etymonline dates it to about 1600,[3] and Merriam-Webster's First Known Use is 1578.[5]

Semantic evolution

The adjective has kept the sense of its base, majesty: stately, grand, kingly.[2][4][5] It is used both of people and their bearing and of things such as scenery or buildings.[2][6] The form majestical survives as a less common variant.[6][5] In 1912 Majestic was recorded as the name of a potato variety with light-skinned, kidney-shaped tubers.[2]

Timeline

  • 1570s – the earlier form majestical.[3]
  • 1578 – Merriam-Webster's first date.[5]
  • 1606 – of things, stately, grand.[2]
  • 1607 – of persons and their attributes.[2]
  • 1650s – majestatic, now archaic.[3]
  • 1912 – Majestic, a potato variety.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Having or showing majesty; grand, stately or impressive: the majestic peaks of the Andes.[6][2][5]
  2. Like a king or queen; regal or imperial in bearing: She walked into the hall with a majestic calm.[5][4]

Word family

  • majestically
  • unmajestic

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Majestic.” Etymologically, 31 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/majestic. Accessed 31 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·