English
comic
Comic comes from Latin comicus ‘comic’, and goes back to Ancient Greek κῶμος ‘carousal’.
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκῶμοςkômos‘carousal’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEκωμικόςkōmikós‘relating to comedy’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcomicus‘comic’
- Englishearliest quotation 1792comic
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκῶμοςkômos‘carousal’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEκωμικόςkōmikós‘relating to comedy’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcomicus‘comic’
- Englishearliest quotation 1792comic
Earliest quotation: 1792, Charlotte Smith, Desmond: “As there was something excessively comique in the distress…”
Linked words
through Ancient Greek κῶμος ‘carousal’
Today it means
adj Pertaining to comedy, as a literary genre.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Ancient Greek κῶμος / comic