English
expression
Expression comes from Late Latin expressiō ‘a pressing out’.
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEexpressiō1as expressiō‘a pressing out’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600expression1
- Englishearliest quotation 1849expression1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English expression
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1849, Great Britain. Committee on Education: “The number of children who could read with expression…”.
Lineage
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEexpressiōWiktionary, English expressionas expressiō‘a pressing out’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600expressionWiktionary, English expression
- Englishearliest quotation 1849expressionWiktionary, English expression. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1849, Great Britain. Committee on Education: “The number of children who could read with expression…”
Formed from express + -ion
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *pres- ‘to press’
first, frist, impressionable, impressionist, impressionism, 31 more
through Proto-Italic *pres-
pressure, impressive, depression, impression, impress, compression, oppression, suppression, depressive, compress, depress, repress, 34 more
through Latin premō ‘press’
press, pregnant, imprint, reprimand, imprimatur, 46 more
through Latin exprimō ‘to press (out)’
Today it means
noun The action of expressing thoughts, ideas, feelings, etc.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “expression”. 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 / Late Latin expressiō / expression