English
ludicrous
Ludicrous comes from Latin lūdicer ‘sportive’, and goes back to lūdō ‘play’.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElūdō‘play’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CElūdiceras lūdicrus‘sportive’
- Englishearliest quotation 1598ludicrous
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElūdō‘play’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CElūdiceras lūdicrus‘sportive’
- Englishearliest quotation 1598ludicrous
Earliest quotation: 1598, Francis Thynne: “[…]to auert their conceits from the consideration of serious,…”
first attested First attested in 1619 (as stated in the etymology)
The story
First attested in 1619.
Linked words
through Proto-Italic *loidō ‘to play’
through Latin lūdō ‘play’
illusion, collusion, elusive, delusion, prelude, interlude, elude, allude, collude, allusive, 18 more
Today it means
adj Idiotic or unthinkable, often to the point of being funny; amusing by being plainly incongruous or absurd.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin lūdō / ludicrous