ambient (adj.)

1590s, "surrounding, encircling," from Latin ambientem (nominative ambiens) "a going around," present participle of ambire "to go around, go about," from amb- "around" (from PIE root *ambhi- "around") + ire "go" (from PIE root *ei- "to go"). The notion of "going all around" led to the sense of "encircling, lying all around."

also from 1590s

Entries linking to ambient

Ambien

trade name for prescription medication Zolpidem, which is used to treat insomnia, registered 1993 in U.S., no doubt suggested by ambient or words like it in French.

circumambient (adj.)

"surrounding, encompassing," 1630s, from circum- + ambient. Related: Circumambiency.

*ambhi-

*ei-

See all related words (4) >

Trends of ambient

adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/. Ngrams are probably unreliable.

More to Explore

ire

c. 1300, from Old French ire "anger, wrath, violence" (11c.), from Latin ira "anger, wrath, rage, passion," from PIE root *eis- (1), forming various words denoting passion (source also of Greek hieros "filled with the divine, holy," oistros "gadfly," originally "thing causing mad

bohemian

"a gypsy of society; person (especially an artist) who lives a free and somewhat dissipated life, despising conventionalities and having little regard for social standards," 1848, from a transferred sense of French bohemién "a Bohemian; a Gypsy," from the country name (see Bohemi

pluck

Middle English plukken, "pull (something) off or out from a surface" (especially hair or feathers, but also teeth), from late Old English ploccian, pluccian "pull off, cull," from West Germanic *plokken (source also of Middle Low German plucken, Middle Dutch plocken, Dutch plukke

Israel

Old English Israel, "the Jewish people, the Hebrew nation," from Latin Israel, from Greek, from Hebrew yisra'el "he that striveth with God" (Genesis xxxii.28), symbolic proper name conferred on Jacob and extended to his descendants, from sara "he fought, contended" + El "God." As

solstice

"one of the two times of the year when the sun is at the greatest distance from the equator," mid-13c., from Old French solstice (13c.), from Latin solstitium "point at which the sun seems to stand still," especially the summer solstice, from sol "the sun" (from PIE root *sawel-

shadow

Middle English shadwe, from Old English sceadwe, sceaduwe "shade, the effect of interception of sunlight; dark image cast by someone or something when interposed between an object and a source of light," oblique cases ("to the," "from the," "of the," "in the") of sceadu (see shad

experience

late 14c., "observation as the source of knowledge; actual observation; an event which has affected one," from Old French esperience "experiment, proof, experience" (13c.), from Latin experientia "a trial, proof, experiment; knowledge gained by repeated trials," from experientem

overcome

Old English ofercuman "to reach, overtake, move or pass over," also "to conquer, prevail over, defeat in combat" (the Devil, evil spirits, sin, temptation, etc.), from ofer (see over) + cuman "to come" (see come (v.)). A common Germanic compound (Middle Dutch overkomen, Old High

silhouette

"portrait in black showing the profile," 1798, from French silhouette, in reference to Étienne de Silhouette (1709-1767), French minister of finance in 1759. The usual reason given is that it was an inexpensive way to make a likeness of someone, and thus the name was a derisive r

obliterate

"blot out, cause to disappear, remove all traces of, wipe out," c. 1600, from Latin obliteratus, past participle of obliterare "cause to disappear, blot out (a writing), erase, efface," figuratively "cause to be forgotten, blot out a remembrance," from ob "against" (see ob-) + li

Share ambient

‘cite’

Page URL:

https://www.etymonline.com/word/ambient

HTML Link:

<a href="https://www.etymonline.com/word/ambient">Etymology of ambient by etymonline</a>

APA style:

Harper, D. (n.d.). Etymology of ambient. Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved $(datetime), from https://www.etymonline.com/word/ambient

Chicago style:

Harper Douglas, “Etymology of ambient,” Online Etymology Dictionary, accessed $(datetime), https://www.etymonline.com/word/ambient.

MLA style:

Harper, Douglas. “Etymology of ambient.” Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com/word/ambient. Accessed $(datetimeMla).

IEEE style:

D. Harper. “Etymology of ambient.” Online Etymology Dictionary. https://www.etymonline.com/word/ambient (accessed $(datetime)).

updated on September 28, 2017

Remove ads >

Dictionary entries near ambient

ambiance

ambidexterity

ambidextrous

Ambien

ambience

ambient

ambiguity

ambiguous

ambisexual

ambisexuality

ambit