Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “decimal” come from?

Decimal comes from Medieval Latin decimalis, from Latin decimus and the suffix -alis, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European déḱm̥ meaning ten.

decimal (English): A number expressed in the base-ten system, a...

Definitions

  1. A number expressed in the base-ten system, a...

Ancestry of “decimal”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Medieval Latindecimalis—
2LatinDecimus—
3Latindecemten; 10
4Latin-nus-an
5Proto-Italic-nos—
6Proto-Indo-European-nósCreates verbal adjectives from roots

Words derived from “decimal”

  • hexadecimal
  • decimally
  • duodecimal
  • decimalization
  • decimalisation
  • nondecimal
  • duodecimally
  • decimalise
  • decimalize
  • decimalism
  • sexadecimal
  • hexadecimally
  • hexit
  • decimalist
  • nonhexadecimal
  • dex
  • postdecimal
  • tetradecimal
  • pentadecimal
  • predecimalization
  • predecimalisation
  • pre-decimalisation
  • pre-decimal
  • desimal
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -nós →