Where does “bad business” come from?
bad business (English) comes from English business, from Middle English busines, from Old English bisiġnes, from Old English -nes, from Proto-West Germanic -nassī, from Proto-Germanic -inassuz, from Proto-West Germanic -ī, from Proto-Germanic -į̄ — Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups...
Ancestry of “bad business”, step by step
bad business traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English business
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | business | A specific commercial enterprise or... |
| 2 | Middle English | busines | — |
| 3 | Old English | bisiġnes | business, busyness |
| 4 | Old English | -nes | Used to form abstract nouns, usually from... |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | -nassī | Used to form abstract nouns, usually from... |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -inassuz | -ness |
| 7 | Proto-West Germanic | -ī | -ness, -th |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | -į̄ | -th |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -íh₂ | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -h₂ | Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups... |
via English bad
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | bad | Unfavorable; negative; not good; Not suitable or... |
| 2 | Middle English | bad | — |
| 3 | Old English | bæd | first/third-person singular preterite of biddan |
| 4 | Old English | biddan | to ask; to beg |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | biddjan | to ask, to make a request |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | bidjaną | to make a request; to ask; to request, ask |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰidʰ- | to command; pot, bucket, barrel |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰeydʰ- | to compel, force; to trust |