Where does “answerlessness” come from?
answerlessness (English) comes from English answerless, from English answer, from Middle English answere, from Old English andswaru, from Proto-West Germanic andaswaru, from Proto-Germanic andaswarō, from Proto-Germanic anda-, from Proto-Indo-European h₂énti — on, onto.
answerlessness (English): Absence of an answer
Definitions
- Absence of an answer
Ancestry of “answerlessness”, step by step
answerlessness traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English answerless
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | answerless | Having or producing no answer; Not capable of... |
| 2 | English | answer | A response or reply; something said or done in... |
| 3 | Middle English | answere | A response to a query or questioning; an... |
| 4 | Old English | andswaru | answer |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | andaswaru | answer, reply |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | andaswarō | answer, reply |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | anda- | against, opposing; un-, de- |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂énti | opposite; near; in front |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂énts | forehead; front |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂ent- | face; forehead; front |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂en- | on, onto |
via English Ness
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Ness | An Ulster princess and the mother of Conchobar mac Nessa and Findchoem in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. Daughter of Eochaid Sálbuide. Also the mother of Cormac Cond Longas by incest with Conchobar mac Nessa |
| 2 | Middle English | nesse | — |
| 3 | Old English | næs | not, not at all; not; first/third-person singular... |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | nasją | foothill; headland; cape |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | néh₂s | nose |