Where does “dignity” come from?
Dignity comes from Middle English dignitee, from Old French dignité, from Latin dignitas meaning worthiness, derived from Latin dignus meaning worthy, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European deḱ- meaning to take or accept.
dignity (English): The state of being dignified or worthy of esteem:...
Definitions
- The state of being dignified or worthy of esteem:...
Ancestry of “dignity”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | dignyte | Worth; value or excellence |
| 2 | Old French | dignité | dignity |
| 3 | Latin | dīgnitās | worth, worthiness, merit, desert |
| 4 | Latin | -tās | ty, -dom, -hood, -ness, -ship |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | -teh₂ts | Used to form nouns representing state of being |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | -teh₂ | Used to form nouns representing state of being |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -tós | Creates verbal adjectives from verb stems |