Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “future” come from?

Future comes from Middle English futur, from Old French futur, from Latin futurus, the participle of sum meaning "to be," ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European h₁ésti.

future (English): The time ahead; those moments yet to be...

Definitions

  1. The time ahead; those moments yet to be...

Ancestry of “future”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishfutureA future action or doing; that which happens in...
2Old Frenchfutur—
3Latinfutūrus—
4Proto-Indo-EuropeanbʰuH-to become, grow, appear

Words derived from “future”

  • futurity
  • futuristic
  • futurist
  • futurism
  • futural
  • futurology
  • futureless
  • futurelessness
  • futuristically
  • Afrofuturism
  • futurition
  • nonfuture
  • futureward
  • futurize
  • Afrofuturist
  • futurely
  • futureworld
  • cyberfuture
  • retrofuture
  • retrofuturistic
  • futurescape
  • futured
  • futurization
  • futurewards
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰuH- →