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motley

Etymology and origin of the English word motley

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Formation
Borrowing
Borrowed from
Anglo-Norman motteley via Middle English

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈmɒtli/ (UK); /ˈmɑtli/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English motlei (“variegated cloth; variegated”),[2][3] probably borrowed from Anglo-Norman motteley,[2][4][5] a word of uncertain origin.[5] It is perhaps based on Middle English mot “speck”, the same word as mote,[2][3][4][6] but other origins, including Gaulish, have been suggested.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Cloth woven of more than one colour (1371), and, as an adjective, particoloured (about 1380).[4][7][5]

Semantic evolution

Motley was a woollen fabric of mixed colours made in England from the 14th to the 17th century,[3] and became the typical dress of the professional fool.[3][7][6] By 1600 motley could mean the fool himself.[5][7] The figurative sense, “made up of diverse or incongruous elements”, is recorded of crowds by 1687 and of things by 1824,[7] and is now the commonest use.[2][3][6]

Timeline

  • 1371 – noun, cloth of mixed colours.[4]
  • about 1380 – adjective, particoloured.[4][7]
  • 1447 – verb, to make particoloured or diverse.[7]
  • 1600 – of a fool's dress; a fool.[7][5]
  • 1687 – of a crowd, made up of diverse kinds.[7]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Made up of varied, often incongruous elements.
  2. Having many colours; particoloured.

Noun

  1. The particoloured costume of a court jester.
  2. A jester; a fool.
  3. An incongruous mixture.
  • mote
  • mottled

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  5. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ a b c Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ 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

“Motley.” Etymologically, 15 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/motley. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·