English
hellfire
Hellfire comes from Middle English helle fire, and goes back to Old English hellefȳr.
- Old Englishc. 450–1150hellefȳr
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500helle fire
- Englishearliest quotation 1902hellfire
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Old Englishc. 450–1150hellefȳr
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500helle fire
- Englishearliest quotation 1902hellfire
Earliest quotation: 1902, William James, Lectures 4 & 5: “The advance of liberalism, so-called, in Christianity, during the…”
Every English word from Old English hellefȳr
Today it means
noun The fire of Hell.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Old English hellefȳr / hellfire