Where does “cruel” come from?
Cruel derives from Old French crual, from Latin crudelis meaning harsh or severe, from Latin crudus meaning raw or bleeding, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European krewh₂- meaning to become raw or bleed.
cruel (English): Intentionally causing or reveling in pain and...
Definitions
- Intentionally causing or reveling in pain and...
Ancestry of “cruel”, step by step
cruel traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via French cruel
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | cruel | cruel; hard, painful |
| 2 | Spanish | cruel | cruel |
| 3 | Latin | crūdēlis | unfeeling, rude |
| 4 | Latin | crūdus | raw, bloody, bleeding |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | krewh₂- | blood outside the body |
via Middle English cruel
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | cruel | Merciless, cruel; revelling in another's pain;... |