archetypal
|ar-che-typ-al|
🇺🇸
/ˌɑr.kɪˈtaɪ.pəl/
🇬🇧
/ˌɑː.kɪˈtaɪ.p(ə)l/
original model / typical example
Etymology
'archetypal' originates from Greek via Latin and French, specifically from the Greek word 'archetypos' where 'arche-' meant 'beginning, original' and 'typos' meant 'impression, model'.
'archetypal' changed from the Greek 'archetypos' to the Late Latin/Medieval Latin 'archetypus', then to French 'archétype', entered English as 'archetype', and the adjective 'archetypal' was formed in English by adding the suffix '-al'.
Initially it meant 'first-formed' or 'original model', and over time it evolved into the current sense of 'relating to or being a typical example or original model'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
relating to or denoting an original model or prototype from which others are derived; serving as a very typical example of a particular kind of person or thing.
The small-town diner is an archetypal setting in many American novels.
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Adjective 2
(often in psychology, esp. Jungian) Relating to universal, inherited prototypes or symbolic patterns that recur across cultures and myths.
Archetypal images such as the mother and the hero appear in myths around the world.
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Last updated: 2025/10/06 02:08