English
lament
Lament comes from Latin lāmentor ‘to wail, weep’, from lāmentum ‘wailing, moaning, weeping’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *leh₂- ‘to bark, howl’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*leh₂-‘to bark, howl’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*lāmentomreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElāmentum‘wailing, moaning, weeping’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CElāmentor‘to wail, weep’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600lamenter
- Englishearliest quotation 1611lament
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*leh₂-‘to bark, howl’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*lāmentomreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElāmentum‘wailing, moaning, weeping’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CElāmentor‘to wail, weep’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600lamenter
- Englishearliest quotation 1611lament
Earliest quotation: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “Ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall…”
The story
Also see latrare.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *leh₂- ‘to bark, howl’
loom, lull, lethargic, latent, loll, lethe, laika, alastor, 16 more
Today it means
noun An expression of grief, suffering, sadness or regret.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *leh₂- / lament