Etymograph

English

title

Title comes from Middle English title, from Old English titul ‘title, heading’, from Latin titulus ‘title, inscription’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtitulus1‘title, inscription’
  2. Old Englishc. 450–1150titul1‘title, heading’
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500title1
  4. Englishearliest quotation c. 1606title1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English title
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1606, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of Macbeth: “Our bosom interest: go pronounce his present death With…”.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtitulusWiktionary, English title‘title, inscription’
  2. Old Englishc. 450–1150titulWiktionary, English title‘title, heading’
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500titleWiktionary, English title
  4. Englishearliest quotation c. 1606titleWiktionary, English title. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1606, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of Macbeth: “Our bosom interest: go pronounce his present death With…”

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Today it means

noun The name of a film, musical piece, painting, or other work of art.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “title”. 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 titulus / title