Etymograph

English

envelop

Envelop comes from Latin in ‘in, into’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEin1‘in, into’
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400anveloper2
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500envolupen2
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1906envelop2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Old French en-
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English envelop
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1906, O. Henry pseudonym; William Sydney Porte, From the Cabby’s Seat: “In the fulness of time there was an eruption…”.

Earlier history not traced here. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinWiktionary, Old French en-‘in, into’
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400anveloperWiktionary, English envelop
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500envolupenWiktionary, English envelop
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1906envelopWiktionary, English envelop. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1906, O. Henry pseudonym; William Sydney Porte, From the Cabby’s Seat: “In the fulness of time there was an eruption…”

Linked words

through Latin in ‘in, into’

encounter, intimate, ensemble, intestine, intimation, emplacement, agog, 5 more

Today it means

verb To surround, enclose or enfold.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “envelop”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Old French en-. 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 / Latin in / envelop

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