Gym
/dʒɪm/noun
A place or facility for physical exercise.
Did you know?Gym comes from Greek gymnasion, tied to gymnos, meaning “naked,” because athletes in ancient Greece trained and competed without clothes.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*n̥gʷʰ-?
“Uncertain prehistory; the Greek form is usually traced to a root meaning “naked,” but the deeper PIE reconstruction is not fully secure.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
γυμνός (gymnós)
“Naked, unclothed.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
γυμνάσιον (gymnásion)
“A place for exercise, training, and intellectual cultivation; originally a training ground where athletes exercised naked.”
Late Latin
Latin
gymnasium
“A school or place of exercise and study.”
Middle French
Old French
gymnase
“A place for exercise or schooling.”
16th–19th Century
English
gymnasium
“A place for physical exercise and training.”
Modern English
English
gym
“Shortened form of gymnasium, meaning a place for exercise.”
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