Etymologically
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victorious

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Pronunciation

  • /vɪkˈtɔːɹiəs/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English victorious,[2] borrowed from Anglo-Norman victorious[3][4][5] (Old French victorios, French victorieux)[4][6][3] and directly borrowed from Latin victōriōsus (“having many victories”),[3][4][7][8] from victōria (“victory”), the source of victory.[3][4][7] The Latin adjective also gave victorioso, vitorioso and vittorioso.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Triumphant, used of things: about 1386, in Chaucer's Man of Law's Tale;[3] the Middle English adjective meant achieving military supremacy or triumphing in feats of arms, and could describe a battle that ended in victory.[2] Etymonline dates it to the late 14th century.[4]

Semantic evolution

In the OED's record, the use of persons or armies is first found in Caxton's Game and Playe of the Chesse (1474), and the sense "of, belonging to or emblematic of victory" in his Eneydos (1490).[3] Chaucer used the word twice.[9] Johnson (1755) defined it as conquering, or superior in a contest.[10] Today it is used of anyone who wins a contest, such as an election.[8][11]

Timeline

  • c. 1386 – of things, triumphant, in Chaucer.[3]
  • 1474 – of persons or an army, having won a victory.[3]
  • 1490 – of or characterized by victory.[3]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Having won a battle, contest or struggle; triumphant: The victorious team paraded through the town.[11][8][3]
  2. Of, marking or characteristic of victory: a victorious shout.[11][8][3]

Word family

  • victoriously
  • victoriousness
  • unvictorious

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Kurath, Hans; Kuhn, Sherman M.; Lewis, Robert E., eds. (1952–2001), Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press; online edition ed. Frances McSparran et al. (2000–2018)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  8. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  9. ^ Benson, Larry D., Glossarial Concordance to Middle English (Chaucer, Gower), Johns Hopkins University, github.com/jhu-digital-manuscripts/gcme
  10. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  11. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins