English
imaginary
Imaginary comes from Latin imāginārius ‘relating to images, fancied’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₂eym- ‘to imitate’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eym-‘to imitate’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEimāgō‘image, imitation, likeness, statue, representation’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEimāginārius‘relating to images, fancied’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ymaginarie
- Englishearliest quotation 1712imaginary
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eym-‘to imitate’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEimāgō‘image, imitation, likeness, statue, representation’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEimāginārius‘relating to images, fancied’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ymaginarie
- Englishearliest quotation 1712imaginary
Earliest quotation: 1712, Joseph Addison, Cato: “Wilt thou add to all the griefs I suffer…”
Formed from imagine + -ary
Latin imāgō ‘a copy, likeness’
Latin imāginor ‘to imagine’
Middle French imaginer
Middle English ymagynen ‘to imagine’
English imagine
The story
The mathematical sense derives from René Descartes's use (of the French imaginaire) in 1637, La Geometrie, to ridicule the notion of regarding non-real roots of polynomials as numbers. Although Descartes' usage was derogatory, the designation stuck even after the concept gained acceptance in the 18th century.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eym- ‘to imitate’
emulate, imitation, imitate, emulation, imitator, 8 more
through Latin imāgō ‘image, imitation, likeness, statue,…’
Today it means
adj Existing only in the imagination.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂eym- / imaginary