Where does “completely” come from?
Completely derives from Middle English -ly added to complete, which comes from Latin completus, the past participle of complere meaning to fill up or finish.
completely (English): In a complete manner; To the fullest extent or...
Definitions
- In a complete manner; To the fullest extent or...
Ancestry of “completely”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | complete | To finish; to make done; to reach the end; To... |
| 2 | Middle English | compleet | Complete, whole, full, or entire; Perfect,... |
| 3 | Old French | complet | — |
| 4 | Latin | complētus | completed |
| 5 | Latin | compleō | to fill up, fill full, fill out; make up, complete |
| 6 | Latin | cōn- | Used in compounds to indicate a being or bringing together of several objects |
| 7 | Latin | cum | with, along with; at; -fold |
| 8 | Old Latin | com | Alternative form of cum |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | kom | with, along, at |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱóm | beside, near, by, with |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 12 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 13 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 14 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 15 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 16 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 17 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 18 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |