English
greasy
Greasy comes from Middle English gresi.
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gresi
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1597greasy
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gresi
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1597greasy
Earliest quotation: c. 1597, William Shakespeare, The Merry Wiues of Windsor: “Let’s consult together against this greasy knight.”
Formed from grease + -y
Latin crassus ‘fat, thick’
Vulgar Latin *crassia ‘fat’
Anglo-Norman grece
Middle English grece
English grease
Every English word from Middle English gresi
Today it means
adj Having a slippery surface; having a surface covered with grease.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle English gresi / greasy