Where does “exemplary” come from?
Exemplary comes from Middle French exemplaire, derived from Latin exemplaris, an adjective form of exemplum meaning "pattern" or "model," ultimately from the prefix ex-.
exemplary (English): Deserving honour, respect and admiration; Of such...
Definitions
- Deserving honour, respect and admiration; Of such...
Ancestry of “exemplary”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | exemplarie | — |
| 2 | Latin | exemplarium | genitive plural of exemplar |
| 3 | Latin | exemplar | model, pattern, example, original or ideal; copy |
| 4 | Latin | exemplum | a sample; an example; a warning example, lesson,... |
| 5 | Latin | eximō | to take out, take away, remove or extract |
| 6 | Latin | emo | I buy, purchase; I acquire, procure |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | emō | to buy, to purchase |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁em- | to take; to distribute |