Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “excellence” come from?

Excellence comes from Old French excellence, from Latin excellentia, meaning the quality of excelling, ultimately derived from the Proto-Indo-European root eǵ-.

excellence (English): The quality of being excellent; brilliance;...

Definitions

  1. The quality of being excellent; brilliance;...

Ancestry of “excellence”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchexcellence—
2Latinexcellentiaexcellence, superiority; merit
3Latinexcellēns—
4LatinexcelloI elevate, raise up; I rise, elevate myself; I...
5Latinex-out, away; throughout; thoroughly
6LatineThe name of the letter "E"; out of, from
7LatinexA name of the letter "X"; out of, from
8Latincommūnicō—
9Latincommūnis—
10Old Latincom(m)oinis—
11Proto-Italickommoinis—
12Proto-Indo-Europeanḱom-moy-ni-held in common
13Proto-Indo-Europeanḱómbeside, near, by, with
14Proto-Indo-EuropeanḱeDeictic particle, here; Post-positional...
15Middle Englishkyt—
16Russianкитwhale; genitive plural of ки́та
17Old Church Slavonicкитъwhale
18Ancient Greekκῆτοςwhale, sea monster; abyss

Words derived from “excellence”

  • superexcellence
Every word from Ancient Greek κῆτος →