Where does “criminal” come from?

criminal (Chavacano) comes from Spanish criminal, from Latin crīminālis, from Latin crīmen, from Proto-Italic kreimen, from Proto-Indo-European kréymn̥, from Proto-Indo-European krey- — to sift, separate, divide.

criminal (Chavacano): criminal

Definitions

  1. criminal

Ancestry of “criminal”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Spanishcriminalcriminal
2Latincrīmināliscriminal
3Latincrīmena judicial decision, verdict, or judgment
4Proto-Italickreimen—
5Proto-Indo-Europeankréymn̥—
6Proto-Indo-Europeankrey-to sift, separate, divide
Every word from Proto-Indo-European krey- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European kréymn̥ →Every word from Proto-Italic kreimen →
criminal — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer