Simplify

How to spell simplify

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce simplify

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does simplify mean?

1. verbTo make something easier to understand or do by removing complexity.

Simplify in a sentence

• The accountant tried to simplify the tax form for new clients.

• A good editor can simplify a dense report without losing the key facts.

Where does simplify come from?

Language of origin: French

This verb comes from the French simplifier, which was built on the medieval Latin simplificare, meaning 'to make simple'. The first part traces to the Latin simplus, literally 'single' or 'onefold', from a combination of sim- (one) and the root meaning 'fold', so something simple was originally something folded just once rather than tangled into many layers. The ending -ify derives from the Latin facere, 'to make or do', the same element that powers a huge family of English verbs such as clarify, magnify and purify. English adopted simplify in the early 1600s, taking it directly from French while the meaning stayed close to the original 'to render plain or uncomplicated'. The spelling trap lies at the join: the base word ends in a soft 'le' (simple), but in simplify that vanishes and the suffix locks on as -ify with a single 'f', not -ipy or -efy.

How the word is built

• simpl- (from Latin simplus: single, plain)
• -ify (verb suffix meaning 'to make or render')