'annulment' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'annullare', where 'ad-' meant 'to/toward' (intensive prefix) and 'nullus' meant 'none' or 'nothing'.

'annulment' changed from Medieval Latin 'annullare' and passed through Old French and Middle English forms (such as 'annullen'/'annul') before being formed in modern English as the verb 'annul' and the noun 'annulment'.

Initially it meant 'to make nothing' or 'to render null'; over time it evolved into the current legal/official sense of 'declare invalid' or 'make void'.