Where Does The Word Nightmare Come From - Before then the term referred to the agent causing the dreams—a mare < mera, mære 'goblin, incubus'. Oed's earliest evidence for nightmare is from around 1300, in st. What word or phrase was used earlier? The word in english now survives only in nightmare (q.v.). Nightmare is formed within english, by compounding. Web the earliest known use of the word nightmare is in the middle english period (1150—1500). That's where the word nightmare comes from. The oxford english dictionary traces the first used of nightmare in english to around 1300, as a female spirit or monster supposed to settle on and produce a feeling of suffocation in a sleeping person or animal. Apparently the word nightmare has only been used in the sense of bad dream since c.
The word in english now survives only in nightmare (q.v.). Apparently the word nightmare has only been used in the sense of bad dream since c. Web the earliest known use of the word nightmare is in the middle english period (1150—1500). Oed's earliest evidence for nightmare is from around 1300, in st. Before then the term referred to the agent causing the dreams—a mare < mera, mære 'goblin, incubus'. Nightmare is formed within english, by compounding. That's where the word nightmare comes from. What word or phrase was used earlier? The oxford english dictionary traces the first used of nightmare in english to around 1300, as a female spirit or monster supposed to settle on and produce a feeling of suffocation in a sleeping person or animal.