NYT Dictionary

CHANGE

/ˈt͡ʃæɪnd͡ʒ/
VerbNounCHANGEchange · 1 syllableGrade 1

Accepted in official NYT Spelling Bee puzzle years: 2020, 2022, 2024, 2026

Meaning

To become something different.

Etymology

Origin: Old English

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *kh₂em-? Proto-Indo-European *(s)ḱh₂embos Proto-Celtic *kambosder. Gaulish cambionbor. Latin cambium Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu. Proto-Italic *-ājō Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Late Latin cambiō Late Latin cambiāreder. Old French changierder. Anglo-Norman chaungerbor. Middle English chaungen English change 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.

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

transformtransitiontransformationaltermodifymake anotheralterationchangedeviationmodification

Antonyms

conservationcontinuanceperpetuationpreservationstay

NYT Puzzle Appearances

Accepted in 3 recorded puzzles:

Join the Spelling Bee Community

Get solving strategies, rare word lists, and puzzle tips in your inbox every week.