Etymologically
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prejudice

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Pronunciation

  • /ˈpɹɛd͡ʒədɪs/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English prejudice, borrowed from Old French prejudice (“harm, damage”), recorded in Old French from the second half of the 13th century[2] and in Anglo-Norman from 1267,[3] and partly a direct borrowing of its source, Latin praeiūdicium (“preliminary inquiry, prior judgement, precedent; damage”).[2][4][5] Etymonline and Barnhart also name Medieval Latin prejudicium (“injustice”) as a direct source.[4][5] The Latin noun is made of prae- (“before”) and iūdicium (“judgement”), from iūdex (“a judge”),[4][5][6] the source of judge;[4] the AHD traces iūdex to Proto-Indo-European *deik-.[6] The verb, recorded from 1447, was formed from the noun,[2][4][5] probably partly after Anglo-Norman and Middle French prejudicier (“to be prejudicial to”) (1344 in legal use) and partly after praeiūdicō.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OED files its first quotation, c. 1300 in the life of Thomas Becket in the South English Legendary, under the sense "preconceived opinion".[2] Barnhart and Etymonline read the first uses, about 1300, as the phrase in prejudice of, "to the detriment of, in contempt of", and as "despite, contempt".[5][4]

Semantic evolution

Weekley held that "harm, injury", the oldest sense in French, was also the oldest in English, and that it survives in prejudicial and without prejudice, while the current sense was restored from the Latin, French using préjugé for it.[7] Harm or detriment resulting from a judgement or action, especially to a person's rights, is recorded from c. 1350, in William of Shoreham,[2][4] and harm in general from c. 1485 until 1790.[2] The sense "previous or hasty judgement" Barnhart dates to about 1395, perhaps before 1387,[5] and Etymonline to the late 14th century.[4] An instance of prejudice, a bias for or against something, is recorded from 1563,[2][8] and the word also meant a forecast (1560–98) and a judgement formed before due consideration (1583–1835).[2] Johnson (1755) defined it as "prepossession; judgment formed beforehand without examination", used both in favour of a thing and against it.[9] In modern use it has narrowed to unreasoned dislike or hostility, especially towards a group of people.[2][10] American intelligence jargon gave terminate with extreme prejudice, "to assassinate", recorded from 1969;[2][11] Etymonline dates it to 1972.[4] The verb first meant to impair or damage (1447), then to judge beforehand (1570–1642); since 1610 it has meant to fill someone with prejudice;[2][8] Etymonline dates the last sense to about 1600.[4] In Cornwall dialect the noun meant a quarrel.[12]

Timeline

  • c. 1300 – first recorded, in the OED as “preconceived opinion”.[2][5]
  • c. 1350 – harm or detriment, especially to a person's rights.[2][4]
  • about 1395 – a previous or hasty judgement.[5]
  • 1447 – verb: to affect adversely, impair.[2][5]
  • 1563 – an instance of prejudice; a bias.[2]
  • 1610 – verb: to fill with prejudice.[2]
  • 1969 – terminate with extreme prejudice, to assassinate.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. An opinion formed beforehand, especially an unfavourable one, not based on reason, knowledge or experience.
  2. Unreasoning dislike of or hostility towards a group of people, especially on grounds of race or religion; the discrimination that results.
  3. A particular bias or preference: He had a prejudice against anything printed in red.
  4. (law) Harm or disadvantage to a person's rights, as in without prejudice and to the prejudice of.

Verb

  1. To give someone a prejudice; to bias their judgement beforehand: The press coverage may prejudice the jurors.
  2. To harm or impair, especially a right, claim or case.

Word family

  • prejudicedly
  • prejudiceless
  • prejudicious

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  6. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  7. ^ Weekley, Ernest (1921), An Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, London: John Murray
  8. ^ a b Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)
  9. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  10. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  11. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  12. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)