essence

The story

1. Ancient Greek · derived fromοὐσία“being”
2. Latin · derived fromessentia“the being or essence of a thing”
3. Middle French · derived fromessence
4. Middle English · inherited fromessence
5. English todayessence

From Middle English essence, from Middle French essence, from Latin essentia (“the being or essence of a thing”), from an artificial formation of esse (“to be”), to translate Ancient Greek οὐσία (ousía, “being”), from ὤν (ṓn), present participle of εἰμί (eimí, “to be, exist”). Displaced native Old English understandennes (literally, "understanden-ness").

Words from the same roots