Etymograph

English

beautify

Beautify comes from Old French beaute ‘beauty’, from Latin facio ‘make’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁k-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeh₁k-1reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰh₁kyéti1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*θakjō1reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*fakjō1‘to make’reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfacio2‘make’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEbellus2‘beautiful, fine’
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400beaute2‘beauty’
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500beutifien2
  9. Englishearliest quotation c. 1607–1608beautify2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin facio
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English beautify
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1607–1608, William Shakespeare, The Late: “And now, / This ornament [i.e. beard] / Makes…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeh₁k-Wiktionary, Latin facioreconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰh₁kyétiWiktionary, Latin facioreconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*θakjōWiktionary, Latin facioreconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*fakjōWiktionary, Latin facio‘to make’reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfacioWiktionary, English beautify‘make’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEbellusWiktionary, English beautify‘beautiful, fine’
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400beauteWiktionary, English beautify‘beauty’
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500beutifienWiktionary, English beautify
  9. Englishearliest quotation c. 1607–1608beautifyWiktionary, English beautify. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1607–1608, William Shakespeare, The Late: “And now, / This ornament [i.e. beard] / Makes…”

Linked words

through Proto-Italic *θakjō

effectively, effectiveness, ineffective, affectionate, imperfection, putrefaction, 62 more

through Proto-Italic *fakjō ‘to make’

effective, factor, difficulty, interface, manufacture, perfection, affection, faction, imperfect, facet, affective, defection, defector, effector, deface, affectation, confectionary, 68 more

through Latin facio ‘make’

face, fact, perfect, effect, difficult, profit, feature, facility, affect, efficient, faculty, affair, infection, sacrifice, facial, deficit, facilitate, feat, defect, efficacy, superficial, facade, counterfeit, fetish, infect, deficient, facsimile, hacienda, maleficent, aficionado, efficacious, parfait, facies, confection, refectory, confit, difficile, beneficent, 85 more

through Latin bellus ‘beautiful, fine’

boo, bello, beal, bauble, beaucoup, 6 more

Today it means

verb To make beautiful; to increase the beauty of.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “beautify”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin facio. 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 / Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁k- / beautify

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