Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “doubtless” come from?

Doubtless comes from Middle English douteles, from Middle English doute, from Old French doute, from Old French douter meaning "to doubt," from Latin dubitāre meaning "to waver between two things," from Latin duo meaning "two."

doubtless (English): Characterized by or experiencing no doubt at all,...

Definitions

  1. Characterized by or experiencing no doubt at all,...

Ancestry of “doubtless”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishdoutelesdoubtless
2Middle Englishdoutedoubt
3Old Frenchdoutedoubt
4Old Frenchdoterto doubt; to fear; to be afraid
5Latindubitō—
6Latindubō—
7Latin*dubos—
8Indo-European*bʰuH-—

Words derived from “doubtless”

  • doubtlessness
Every word from Indo-European *bʰuH- →