English
reform
Reform comes from Middle English reformen, from Old French reformer, from Latin refōrmō ‘to reshape’, from re- + fōrmō ‘to form’.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErefōrmōas reformo‘to reshape, transform’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400reformer
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500reformen‘to restore, reform’
- Englishearliest quotation 1709reform
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErefōrmōas reformo‘to reshape, transform’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400reformer
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500reformen‘to restore, reform’
- Englishearliest quotation 1709reform
Earliest quotation: 1709, Jonathan Swift: “Thus human nature seems to lie under the disadvantage,…”
Linked words
through Ancient Greek μορφή ‘shape, form’
through Etruscan *morma
uniformity, deformable, 17 more
through Latin fōrma
transformation, formula, formal, uniform, informatics, forma, fromage, 23 more
through Latin fōrmō ‘to shape, form, fashion, format’
Today it means
noun The change of something that is defective, broken, inefficient or otherwise negative, in order to correct or improve it
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin refōrmō / reform