Etymograph

English

mignon

Mignon comes from French mignon ‘cute’, from Middle French mignon ‘lover, darling, favourite’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *men- ‘to think’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*men-1‘to think’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*minjō1‘affectionate thought, care’reconstructed
  3. Frankishc. 250–700*minnju1‘love, friendship, affection, memory’reconstructed
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400mignon1‘dainty, pleasing, gentle, kind’
  5. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600mignon1‘lover, darling, favourite’
  6. Frenchc. 1600–presentmignon1‘cute’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1789mignon1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English mignon
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1789, John Moore, Zeluco: ““I wish the blow he dealt to that fine…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*men-Wiktionary, English mignon‘to think’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*minjōWiktionary, English mignon‘affectionate thought, care’reconstructed
  3. Frankishc. 250–700*minnjuWiktionary, English mignon‘love, friendship, affection, memory’reconstructed
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400mignonWiktionary, English mignon‘dainty, pleasing, gentle, kind’
  5. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600mignonWiktionary, English mignon‘lover, darling, favourite’
  6. Frenchc. 1600–presentmignonWiktionary, English mignon‘cute’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1789mignonWiktionary, English mignon. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1789, John Moore, Zeluco: ““I wish the blow he dealt to that fine…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *men- ‘to think’

music, money, amount, mind, comment, mental, mouth, remain, mountain, museum, permanent, mention, auto, mount, monster, monitor, min, mentor, demonstration, monetary, maya, dementia, monument, amnesty, monk, mint, muse, mosaic, menace, mas, mandarin, mantra, imminent, monastery, mania, monte, muster, prominence, eminent, amnesia, 122 more

through Middle French mignon ‘lover, darling, favourite’

minion, 3 more

Today it means

adj Small and cute; pretty in a delicate way; dainty.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “mignon”. 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 *men- / mignon

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