Etymograph

English

immunize

Immunize comes from French immuniser ‘to immunize/immunise’.

  1. Frenchc. 1600–presentimmuniser1‘to immunize/immunise’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1992immunize1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English immunize
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1992, Douglas MacLean, Ethics and Biological Defense Research: “This kind of warfare [i.e., biological] would have us…”.

Lineage

  1. Frenchc. 1600–presentimmuniserWiktionary, English immunize‘to immunize/immunise’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1992immunizeWiktionary, English immunize. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1992, Douglas MacLean, Ethics and Biological Defense Research: “This kind of warfare [i.e., biological] would have us…”

Formed from immune + -ize

Proto-Indo-European *mey- ‘to attach, bind, strengthen’

…

Latin mūnus ‘service’

Latin in- -is

Latin immūnis ‘exempt from public service’

Middle French immun

English immune

Every English word from French immuniser

Today it means

verb To make someone or something immune to something.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “immunize”. 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 / French immuniser / immunize

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