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Morphine

3 stages from Latin to English.

Today it means a strong painkilling drug obtained from opium

Where does the word "morphine" come from? It comes from Latin Morpheus, passing through German before entering English (1828).

Morpheus→Morphium→morphine

Latin · ancient

"god of dreams"

the god of dreams, 'the shaper', from Greek morphē 'form'; his only ancient appearance is in Ovid's Metamorphoses (AD 8), taking human shapes in dreams

"opium alkaloid"

the pharmacist's assistant Friedrich Sertürner of Paderborn isolated the chief alkaloid of opium around 1804 and published it in 1805, the first alkaloid isolated from any plant

English · 1828

"painkilling drug"

renamed with the -ine ending of alkaloids in 1818; the hypodermic syringe of the 1850s made it the standard battlefield painkiller of the American Civil War

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Morphine’s story begins in Latin: Morpheus meant “god of dreams.” The god of dreams, 'the shaper', from Greek morphē 'form'; his only ancient appearance is in Ovid's Metamorphoses (AD 8), taking human shapes in dreams. By 1805, the word had taken hold in German as Morphium. The pharmacist's assistant Friedrich Sertürner of Paderborn isolated the chief alkaloid of opium around 1804 and published it in 1805, the first alkaloid isolated from any plant. It reached English by 1828 as morphine. Renamed with the -ine ending of alkaloids in 1818; the hypodermic syringe of the 1850s made it the standard battlefield painkiller of the American Civil War. Today, morphine means a strong painkilling drug obtained from opium.