myriad

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈmɪɹi.əd/, /ˈmɪɹi.æd/^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French myriade and Late Latin myrias,^[2][3] from Ancient Greek μυριάς (muriás, “ten thousand”),^{[4][2][3][5][6]} from mūríos “countless”,^[4][2][3][5] a word of unknown origin.^[3] Ten thousand was the largest number in Greek expressed by a single word.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The number ten thousand, and countless numbers (1555).^[7][2][3][5]

Semantic evolution

The precise sense “ten thousand” is used mainly in translations from Greek or Latin.^[7][3] The adjective “innumerable” is dated to 1765 by Merriam-Webster^[5] and to about 1800 by Etymonline and Barnhart.^[3][2]

Timeline

• 1555 – ten thousand; countless numbers.^[7][2][3][5]
• 1765 – adjective, innumerable.^[5]
• about 1800 – adjective, per Etymonline and Barnhart.^[3][2]

Modern meaning

Adjective

1. Too many to count; innumerable.
2. Having countless different aspects or elements.

Noun

1. A vast number, as in a myriad of ideas.
2. Ten thousand.

Word family

• myriadly

Usage notes

The noun is older than the adjective.^[5][4] The American Heritage Dictionary notes that adjectival use, which began in the 19th century, became so established that some people wrongly came to think it the only correct one; both uses are justified, since Greek murias could be noun or adjective.^[4] Merriam-Webster likewise sees no reason to avoid myriads or a myriad of, which occur in Milton and Thoreau.^[5]

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
5. ^ a b c d e f g h Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
7. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press