Etymograph

English

morsel

Morsel comes from Medieval Latin morsellum ‘a bit, a little piece’, from Latin morsus ‘bitten’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)merd- ‘to bite, to sting’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)merd-‘to bite, to sting’root as named
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)mord-éye-tireconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*mordeō‘to bite’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmordeo‘to bite’
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEmorsus‘bitten’perfect passive participle of mordeo
  6. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEmorsum‘a bit’
  7. Medieval Latinc. 600–1500morsellum‘a bit, a little piece’diminutive of morsum
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400morsel
  9. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form‘a piece of food’
  10. Englishearliest quotation 1644same form

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)merd-‘to bite, to sting’root as named
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)mord-éye-tireconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*mordeō‘to bite’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmordeo‘to bite’
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEmorsus‘bitten’perfect passive participle of mordeo
  6. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEmorsum‘a bit’
  7. Medieval Latinc. 600–1500morsellum‘a bit, a little piece’diminutive of morsum
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400morsel
  9. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form‘a piece of food’
  10. Englishearliest quotation 1644same form

Earliest quotation: 1644, James Howell, England’s Teares: “Me thinks I ſee the Turke nodding vvith his…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *(s)merd- ‘to bite, to sting’

smart, 6 more

through Latin mordeo ‘to bite’

remorse, mordant, 5 more

Today it means

noun A small fragment or share of something, commonly applied to food.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *(s)merd- / morsel

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