Etymograph

English

sample

Sample comes from Middle English saumple ‘exemplar, illustration, demonstration’, from Old French essample ‘example’, and ultimately from Latin eximō ‘to take out, take away’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEeximō1‘to take out’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEexemplum2‘a sample’
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400essample2‘example’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500saumple2‘exemplar’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1600sample2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin exemplum
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English sample
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1600, Torquato Tasso, Godfrey of Bulloigne: “Thus he concludes, and euery hardie knight / His…”.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEeximōWiktionary, Latin exemplum‘to take out’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEexemplumWiktionary, English sample‘a sample’
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400essampleWiktionary, English sample‘example’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500saumpleWiktionary, English sample‘exemplar’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1600sampleWiktionary, English sample. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1600, Torquato Tasso, Godfrey of Bulloigne: “Thus he concludes, and euery hardie knight / His…”

Linked words

through Latin eximō ‘to take out, take away’

exemption, 4 more

through Latin exemplum ‘a sample, example’

example, exemplary, exemplify, exemplar, 2 more

Today it means

noun A part or snippet of something taken or presented for inspection, or shown as evidence of the quality of the whole; a specimen.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “sample”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin exemplum. 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 eximō / sample

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