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Etymology data from Wiktionary via Wiktextract (CC BY-SA 4.0). Chinese character data from the 說文解字, the Taiwan MOE 國語辭典簡編本 (CC BY-ND 3.0 TW) and HSK/TOCFL lists.

Explanations are written by a local model (gemma4) and only published after a verification pass against the cited sources. How it works.

English

change

/ˈt͡ʃeɪnd͡ʒ/
To become something different.

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    • derived
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    • meaning component
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    Origin

    From Middle English changen, chaungen, from Old French changier, from Late Latin cambiāre, from Latin cambīre (“to exchange, barter”), derived from the noun cambium (“change”) (whence was loaned the English doublet cambium), from Gaulish cambion, earlier *kambyom (“change”), related to Proto-Celtic *kambos (“twisted, crooked”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ḱh₂(e)mbos, *(s)kh₂(e)mbos (“crooked”). More at skimp, scam; see also Proto-Indo-European *kh₂em-.

    Cognate with Italian cambiare, Portuguese cambiar, Romanian schimba, Sicilian canciari, Spanish cambiar. Used in English since the 13th century. Displaced Middle English wenden, from wendan (“to turn, change”) (whence wend).

    The noun is from Middle English change, chaunge, from Old French change, from the verb changier. See also exchange. Possibly related from the same source is Old English gombe.

    From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

    Lineage

    • inheritedMiddle Englishchaungen
      • borrowedAnglo-Normanchaunger
        • derivedOld Frenchchangier
          • derivedLate Latincambiāre “to change”
            • derivedLate Latincambiō “I exchange”
              • partLatincambium “exchange”
                • borrowedGaulishcambion
                  • derivedProto-Celtic*kambos “bent, crooked”
                    • derivedProto-Indo-European*(s)kambo- “crooked”
                    • derivedOld Englishtūn “estate”
                      • inheritedProto-West Germanic*tūn
                      • derivedOld Welshbyr “short”
                      • derivedOld NorseNagli
                      • derivedOld Irisháth “ford”
                      • derivedOld Englisheald “old”
              • partLatin-ō “denominative”
                • inheritedProto-Italic*-āō
                • derivedProto-Indo-European*-ō
                • inheritedProto-Italic*-ōd
                  • inheritedProto-Indo-European*-éad
                • derivedProto-Indo-European*-Hō

    Related: English cambium (doublet), Italian cambiare, Portuguese cambiar, Romanian schimba, Sicilian canciari, Spanish cambiar

    Words built on it: 唱, name change

    Meanings

    verb
    1. To become something different.
    2. To make something into something else.
    3. To replace.
    4. To replace one's clothing.
    5. To replace the clothing of (the one wearing it), especially to put a clean diaper on (someone).
    6. To replace the sheets on (a bed) with fresh clean ones.
    noun
    1. The process or result of becoming different.
    2. Small denominations of money given in exchange for a larger denomination.
    3. A replacement.
    4. A replacement of a soiled diaper with a clean one; a diaper change.
    5. Balance of money returned from the sum paid after deducting the price of a purchase.
    6. An amount of cash, usually in the form of coins, but sometimes inclusive of paper money.

    Sources

    • Wiktionary (via Wiktextract / kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0
    • Wiktionary: change