English
illusion
Illusion comes from Latin illūdere, and goes back to lūdō ‘to play, mock, trick’.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElūdōas lūdere‘to play, mock, trick’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEillūdere
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEillūsiō
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400illusion
- Englishearliest quotation 1967same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElūdōas lūdere‘to play, mock, trick’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEillūdere
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEillūsiō
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400illusion
- Englishearliest quotation 1967same form
Earliest quotation: 1967, Four Tops, Reach Out I'll Be There: “Now if you feel that you can't go on…”
Linked words
through Proto-Italic *loidō ‘to play’
through Latin lūdō ‘to play, mock, trick’
prelude, ludicrous, interlude, elusive, elude, delusion, collusion, allude, collude, allusive, 18 more
Today it means
noun A distortion of sensory perception where real stimuli lead to a false or misleading impression of reality.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin lūdō / illusion