Etymograph

English

mutation

Mutation comes from Latin mūtātiō ‘change, alteration’, and goes back to mūtō.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmūtō1
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmūtātiō2‘change, alteration’by way of Old French mutacion
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400mutacion3
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500mutacioun2‘alteration, change, modification’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1984mutation2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin mutatio
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English mutation
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Middle English mutacioun
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1984, Virginia Wildlife: “Birdwatchers would enjoy a host of sparrows, a herd…”.

Earlier history not traced here. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmūtōWiktionary, Latin mutatio
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmūtātiōWiktionary, English mutation‘change, alteration’by way of Old French mutacion
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400mutacionWiktionary, Middle English mutacioun
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500mutaciounWiktionary, English mutation‘alteration, change, modification’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1984mutationWiktionary, English mutation. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1984, Virginia Wildlife: “Birdwatchers would enjoy a host of sparrows, a herd…”

Linked words

through Latin mūtō

commute, mute, mutant, immutable, molt, moult, mutable, commutative, 13 more

Today it means

noun Any alteration or change.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “mutation”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin mutatio, Middle English mutacioun. 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 mūtō / mutation

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