English
gorgeous
Gorgeous comes from Middle English gorgeouse, from Middle French gorgias ‘elegant, fashionable’, from Old French gourgias, of uncertain origin.
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400gourgias1‘gorgeous, gaudy, flaunting’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600gorgias1‘elegant, fashionable’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gorgeouse1
- Englishearliest quotation 1883gorgeous1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English gorgeous
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1883, Mark Twain, Chapter VII: A daring deed: “Two or three of them wore polished silk hats,…”.
Lineage
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400gourgiasWiktionary, English gorgeous‘gorgeous, gaudy, flaunting’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600gorgiasWiktionary, English gorgeous‘elegant, fashionable’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gorgeouseWiktionary, English gorgeous
- Englishearliest quotation 1883gorgeousWiktionary, English gorgeous. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1883, Mark Twain, Chapter VII: A daring deed: “Two or three of them wore polished silk hats,…”
The story
From Middle English gorgeouse, a borrowing from Middle French gorgias (‘elegant, fashionable’), from Old French gourgias, gorgias (‘gorgeous, gaudy, flaunting, gallant, fine’), of uncertain origin, but apparently connected with Old French gorgias (‘a gorget, ruffle for the neck’), from Old French gorge (‘bosom, throat’).uncertain The source flags this step as uncertain.
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Today it means
adj Sumptuously dressed.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “gorgeous”. 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 / Old French gourgias / gorgeous