Etymograph

English

adoxography

Adoxography comes from New Latin adoxus ‘absurd, paradoxical’, from Ancient Greek ἄδοξος ‘obscure, ignoble’, and ultimately from δόξα ‘expectation’.

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEδόξα1dóxa‘expectation’
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἄδοξος1ádoxos‘obscure, ignoble’
  3. New Latinc. 1500–1900adoxus1‘absurd, paradoxical’
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1910adoxography1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English adoxography
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1910, William White, Notes and Queries: “ADOXOGRAPHY," […] The former word, with the still uglier…”.

Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEδόξαWiktionary, English adoxographydóxa‘expectation’
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἄδοξοςWiktionary, English adoxographyádoxos‘obscure, ignoble’
  3. New Latinc. 1500–1900adoxusWiktionary, English adoxography‘absurd, paradoxical’
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1910adoxographyWiktionary, English adoxography. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1910, William White, Notes and Queries: “ADOXOGRAPHY," […] The former word, with the still uglier…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *deḱ- ‘to accept’

doctor, decent, document, tail, dignity, doctrine, decoration, decor, disdain, indignation, dainty, fonda, dogma, indignant, doctrinal, docile, dodo, dignitary, deign, digne, dox, docent, 53 more

through Ancient Greek δόξα ‘expectation’

paradox, 8 more

Today it means

noun Fine writing on a minor or trivial subject.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “adoxography”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Ancient Greek δόξα / adoxography

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