Etymograph

English

mutism

Mutism comes from French mutisme ‘mutism, aphasia’, and goes back to Latin mutus ‘mute’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmutus1‘mute’
  2. Frenchc. 1600–presentmutisme1‘mutism, aphasia’
  3. Englishtodaymutism1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English mutism

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmutusWiktionary, English mutism‘mute’
  2. Frenchc. 1600–presentmutismeWiktionary, English mutism‘mutism, aphasia’
  3. EnglishtodaymutismWiktionary, English mutism

Formed from mute + -ism

Anglo-Norman muet

Middle English muet

English mute

Linked words

through Latin mutus ‘mute’

motto, mot, 2 more

Today it means

noun The inability to speak, be it from psychological or physical cause.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “mutism”. 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 mutus / mutism

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