Etymograph

English

surreal

Surreal comes from French surréalisme ‘surrealism’, from réalisme ‘realism’, and ultimately from Old French reel.

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400reel
  2. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600real
  3. Frenchc. 1600–presentréel‘real’
  4. French, derivedc. 1600–presentréalisme‘realism’
  5. French, derivedc. 1600–presentsurréalisme‘surrealism’
  6. English1500–presentsurrealism
  7. Englishearliest quotation 2016surreal

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400reel
  2. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600real
  3. Frenchc. 1600–presentréel‘real’
  4. French, derivedc. 1600–presentréalisme‘realism’
  5. French, derivedc. 1600–presentsurréalisme‘surrealism’
  6. English1500–presentsurrealism
  7. Englishearliest quotation 2016surreal

Earliest quotation: 2016, Dave Bry, 'Surreal' is Merriam-Webster's word of the year. Sounds abou: “Three weeks after the second Time meltdown cover, one…”

Formed from sur- + real

Proto-Indo-European *upér ‘over’

Proto-Italic *super ‘above’

Latin super ‘[of place] above’

English sur-

Proto-Indo-European *reh₁ís ‘wealth, goods’

…

Latin rēs ‘thing, matter’

Late Latin reālis ‘actual’

Old French reel

Middle English real ‘real, true’

English real

Linked words

through Middle French real

realise, realisation, 2 more

Today it means

adj Resembling a dream: fantastic and incongruous.

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

Etymograph / Old French reel / surreal

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