Where does “declension” come from?
Declension comes from Middle English declenson, from Middle French declinaison, from Latin declinatio, derived from Latin declino, composed of the prefix de- and a root from Proto-Indo-European ḱley-, itself from ḱel-.
declension (English): A falling off, decay or descent; The act of...
Definitions
- A falling off, decay or descent; The act of...
Ancestry of “declension”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | declinson | An inflectional class; a nominal declension or verbal conjugation |
| 2 | Middle French | declinaison | — |
| 3 | Latin | dēclīnātiō | declination |
| 4 | Latin | -ātiō | — |
| 5 | Latin | -tiō | tion, -ation, -ing |
| 6 | Latin | dissertātiō | (spoken) dissertation, discourse, disquisition |
| 7 | Latin | dissertus | arranged, disposed; explained |
| 8 | Latin | disserere | second-person singular future passive indicative... |
| 9 | Latin | dis- | asunder, apart, in two; reversal, removal;... |
| 10 | Latin | calceus | shoe |
| 11 | Latin | calx | limestone; chalk; the finish line |
| 12 | Ancient Greek | χάλιξ | small stone, pebble; gravel, rubble |