desire (English)

Where does "desire" come from?

The English noun 'desire' traces its history to the Middle English 'desir'[1][3], which was borrowed from the Old French 'desirer'[1]. This French term ultimately stems from the Latin 'dēsīderō', meaning 'to long for' or 'miss'[1][4]. The Latin root is thought to be a combination of 'de-' and 'sidus', which refers to a 'star' or 'constellation'[1][2]. This etymology suggests the word may have originally conveyed the sense of waiting or wishing upon a star[2]. In the English language, this borrowed term eventually displaced the native Old English word 'wilnung'[1].

Open questions

The derivation of 'sidus' from a Proto-Indo-European root meaning to bind or tie remains a tentative preference rather than a settled fact. [5]
Connections between 'sidus' and various Proto-Indo-European roots like those meaning to achieve a goal or to sweat are considered semantically tenuous or unconvincing. [5]
The exact origin of 'sidus' is unclear, with possibilities including a substrate borrowing or an evolution from hunter jargon. [5]

Full etymology tree

desire (English), 'The feeling of desiring; an eager longing for something.'
- inherited desir/desiren (Middle English)
  - learned borrowing desirer/desirrer (Old French)
    - inherited desidero (Latin), 'to want, desire, wish for, long for'
      - prefix de- (Latin), 'of; from'
      - compound sidus (Latin), 'group of stars, constellation, asterism'
        inherited *sīþos (Proto-Italic)

Ancestors

desir (Middle English)
desirer (Old French)
desidero (Latin)

Descendants and derived words

alphabet of desire (English)
baptism of desire (English)
counterdesire (English)
desirably (English)
desireful (English)
desireless (English)
desire line (English)
desirement (English)
desire path (English)
heart's desire (English)
mimetic desire (English)
misdesire (English)

Sources

Updated August 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris