early 15c., "shadow, darkness, shade" (senses now obsolete), from Old French ombrage "shade, shadow," from noun use of Latin umbraticum "of or pertaining to shade; being in retirement," neuter of umbraticus "of or pertaining to shade," from umbra "shade, shadow," from PIE root *andho- "blind; dark" (source also of Sanskrit andha-, Avestan anda- "blind, dark").

Especially shade from the foliage of trees. The word had many figurative uses in 17c.; the meaning "suspicion that one has been slighted," is recorded by 1610s from the notion of being "overshadowed" by another and consigned to obscurity.

Hence phrase take umbrage at, attested by 1670s. Compare modern (by 2013) slang verbal phrase throw shade "(subtly) insult (something or someone)."

Ok but imagine McGonagall in cat form prowling around the castle, in strategically chosen places so that Umbridge will come across her.

Umbridge takes the cat back to her office and feeds it a little saucer of milk. The cat starts coming back to Umbridge's office around the same time every night, until eventually

Umbridge gets into a little routine of setting out a saucer of milk for the cat before bed.

McGonagall now has all the best secrets on Umbridge, all of the results of the evaluations, and most importantly, is in a perfect position to spy on the ministry for the Order of the Phoenix.

We all know and hate Umbridge, yeah? Well, I never really realized how much depth there is to the meaning of her name until now.

The word “umbrage” (pronounced the same as Umbridge) has several definitions, almost all of which are connected to the character.

“a feeling of pique or resentment at someone often fancied slight or insult” - Fairly self-explanatory; all the characters resent her and feel insulted by her vice versa

“shade, shadow” - she as a character is representative of the shadow of the ministry imposing itself upon Hogwarts, Dumbledore, and the students

“an indistinct indication; vague suggestion” - the lady is passive aggressive af and rarely says anything outright, opting to give vague indicators that are implied to be threats

Aether Eternius fan art