Where does “falsely” come from?
Falsely comes from Middle English -ly adverbial suffix added to false, which derives from Latin falsus, the past participle of fallo meaning to deceive or disappoint.
falsely (English): In a false manner
Definitions
- In a false manner
Ancestry of “falsely”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | falsly | falsely |
| 2 | Middle English | fals | false |
| 3 | Old English | fals | falsehood, fraud, counterfeit; false |
| 4 | Latin | falsus | deceived, tricked, cheated, disappointed, having... |
| 5 | Latin | fallō | to deceive, beguile, trick, cheat, delude, ensnare, disappoint |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵʰwel- | to bend; to lie, deceive |