Meronym
/ˈmɛr.ə.nɪm/noun
A word that names a part of something represented by another word, such as “wheel” in relation to “car.”
Did you know?“Meronym” was coined in the 20th century from ancient Greek roots, combining “part” with “name”—a precise linguistic counterpart to “holonym,” meaning the whole.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*mer-
“A reconstructed root associated with dividing, allotting, or separating into parts”
Ancient Greek
Greek
μέρος (meros)
“A part, portion, or share”
Ancient Greek
Greek
ὄνομα (onoma)
“A name or word used to identify something”
Late 19th Century
English
-onym
“A productive English combining form derived from Greek onoma, meaning “name””
1963
English
meronym
“A term introduced by linguist John Lyons for a word denoting a part of something”
Modern English
English
meronym
“A word expressing a part-to-whole relationship”