Etymology

laxative

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Today it means: Having the effect of moving the bowels, or aiding digestion and preventing constipation. Full definition →

Middle French laxatif ← Latin laxātīvus
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The story

  1. Latin · derived fromlaxātīvus
  2. Middle French · derived fromlaxatif
  3. English todaylaxative

From Middle French laxatif, from Latin laxātīvus (literally “relaxing, loosening”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.