allegory

Where does the word "allegory" come from? It comes from Greek allegoria, and was adopted directly into English (1300s).

Allegory’s story begins in Greek: allegoria meant “speaking otherwise, veiled meaning.” Literally speaking otherwise, from allos (other) and agoreuein (to speak). It reached English by 1300s as allegory. Settled as the English word for a story with a hidden symbolic meaning. Today, allegory means a story, poem, or image whose events or characters carry a hidden symbolic meaning.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient allegoria "speaking otherwise, veiled meaning", literally speaking otherwise, from allos (other) and agoreuein (to speak).
2. Stage 2 · English · 1300s allegory "a story with a hidden symbolic meaning", settled as the English word for a story with a hidden symbolic meaning.