Etymologically
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rainbow

Etymology and origin of the English word rainbow

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
c. 1000
From
Old English regnboga via Middle English
Ultimate origin
Old English (regnboga)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈɹeɪnbəʊ/ (UK); /ˈɹeɪnboʊ/, /ˈɹeɪmboʊ/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English reinbowe, inherited from Old English regnboga (“rainbow”), rēnboga,[2][3][4] a compound of rain and bow,[2][5] common to Germanic: Old Norse regnbogi, Dutch regenboog, German Regenbogen.[2][3] Old English also had scūrboga, shower-bow.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

An arch of prismatic colours formed by the refraction of sunlight in drops of rain or spray: about 1000.[6][2]

Semantic evolution

A brightly coloured arch or ring resembling a rainbow is from 1715,[6] and figurative use, sometimes alluding to the sign of God's covenant in Genesis, from 1742.[6] In boxing slang of 1811 a rainbow was a discoloured bruise.[6] The American rainbow trout (1876) is named for its colours.[2] An illusory hope, as in to chase rainbows, is a later figurative sense.[7][8]

Timeline

  • c. 1000 – the arc in the sky.[6]
  • 1715 – a similar coloured arch.[6]
  • 1742 – figurative use.[6]
  • 1811 – a bruise (boxing slang).[6]
  • 1876 – rainbow trout.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. An arc of the colours of the spectrum seen in the sky opposite the sun, caused by the refraction and reflection of sunlight in drops of rain or mist.
  2. A similar display of colours, as from a prism.
  3. An illusory hope: to chase rainbows.

Adjective

  1. Many-coloured, or representing great variety.

Word family

  • rainbowlike
  • rainbowy
  • fogbow
  • mistbow
  • rainbow-collar
  • rainbow bridge
  • rainbow cactus
  • rainbow darter

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ 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
  7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins

Related etymologies

  • neat · also from Old English
  • bean · also from Old English
  • needle · also from Old English
  • wade · also from Old English
  • dale · also from Old English
  • whale · also from Old English
  • berry · also from Old English
  • thorough · also from Old English
Cite this entry

“Rainbow.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/rainbow. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·