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oxygen

Etymology and origin of the English word oxygen

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1789
Borrowed from
French oxygène
Ultimate origin
Ancient Greek (ὀξύς)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈɒksɪd͡ʒən/ (UK); /ˈɑksɪd͡ʒən/, /ˈɑksəd͡ʒən/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French oxygène, coined in 1777 by the French chemist Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier,[2][3] from Ancient Greek ὀξύς (oxús, “sharp, acid”) and French -gène (“producing”) (see -gen),[3][2][4] meaning “acid-producer”, a rendering of principe acidifiant (“acidifying principle”).[2][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The element: 1789 in the OED, 1790 in Barnhart and Etymonline;[6][3][2] MWU has 1788.[7]

Semantic evolution

Lavoisier chose the name because oxygen was then thought to be essential to the formation of acids, which is now known to be false.[2][3][5] Priestley, who isolated the gas in 1774, called it dephlogisticated air in the terms of the old phlogiston theory, and its fall required a new name.[2] The oxygen mask is from 1912,[2] and an atom of oxygen is also called oxygen (1950).[6]

Timeline

  • 1774 – isolated by Priestley.[2]
  • 1777 – French oxygène, coined by Lavoisier.[2]
  • 1789 – oxygen in English.[6]
  • 1912 – oxygen mask.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A colourless, odourless gaseous element, symbol O, that makes up about a fifth of the atmosphere and is essential for respiration and combustion.
  2. (figurative) Something needed for growth or survival: the oxygen of publicity.

Word family

  • oxygenic
  • oxygenically
  • oxygenless
  • hydroxy-
  • hydroxyl
  • oxide
  • oxo-
  • oxo
  • oxy-
  • oxy
  • oxygenase
  • oxygenate
  • oxytocic
  • acid
  • acute
  • hydrogen
  • nitrogen

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Oxygen.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/oxygen. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·