multiverse

Etymology

It is formed from English multi- + universe, with the ending of universe;^{[2][3][4][5][6][7]} Etymonline describes it as an alternative to universe meant to convey a lack of order and unity.^[6] The OED compares the earlier nulliverse, a world devoid of any unifying plan (1847).^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

A cosmos lacking unity or order: Etymonline quotes a letter by Wm Denovan to Scientific American (23 November 1873), which contrasts a universe governed by God with "a cohering multiverse".^[6] The OED's first record is William James's in 1895, of the universe considered as having no single ruling and guiding power.^[2][3][5]

Semantic evolution

The philosophical sense of James gave way in the second half of the 20th century to a sense first found in science fiction: a hypothetical realm made up of many universes, of which ours is only one, recorded from 1963 in a story by Michael Moorcock.^[2] It was taken up in physics and cosmology for the set of parallel universes that some theories propose,^[2][3][4] and is used for the linked worlds of a work or series of fiction.^[4] From 1987 it is also used figuratively of a sphere of very varied possibility, such as the mind.^[2]

Timeline

• 1873 – a universe lacking order and unity.^[6]
• 1895 – the same, in William James.^[2][3]
• 1963 – a realm made up of many universes, first in science fiction, later in physics.^[2]
• 1987 – figuratively, a sphere of very varied possibility.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. In physics and cosmology, the whole set of parallel universes that some theories suppose to make up reality, our own being only one of them.^[4][3][8][2]
2. A similar set of parallel worlds in a work or series of fiction: The film's heroes travel across the multiverse.^[4]
3. The universe regarded as having no order, unity or single guiding power.^[3][9][2][5]
4. Figuratively, a sphere of very varied possibilities, such as the imagination.^[2]

Related words

• universe
• nulliverse

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d e The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
5. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
7. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
9. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press