emolument
/ɪˈmɒljʊmənt/
noun
Origin
Latin
emolere — to grind out (grain), from e- (out) + molere (to grind)
Overview
Meaning Now
- A salary, fee, or profit from employment or office.
- The returns arising from an office or employment; perquisites.
Literal older meaning
originally 'the amount of grain ground at a mill'
Language path
Latin → Middle French → English
Earliest form
emolumentum
Earliest period
15th century
Journey
The term derives from the Roman practice of 'grinding out' a living, where the 'emolument' was the payment or profit one took away from the mill. It evolved in legal and formal English to refer specifically to the compensation attached to an office or position rather than simple manual labor wages.
Evolution
- Classical Latin
emolere
“to grind out grain”
- Latin
emolumentum
“a gain, advantage, or profit”
Shifted from the physical act of milling to the value/result of labor.
- Middle French
émolument
“profit, advantage”
- Middle English
emolument
“profit from office”
Connections
Word parts
e-
prefix
out
mol-
root
grind
-ument
suffix
result of an action
Related across languages
French
émoluments
earnings or salary
Latin
molitura
the act of grinding or the fee for grinding
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Related to emolument
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.