Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “hardiness” come from?

Hardiness comes from Middle English -nesse, Old English -nes, Proto-Germanic -inassuz and hardijaną, and Proto-Indo-European kert-, originally meaning to grasp or seize.

hardiness (English): The quality of being hardy; Hardship; fatigue

Definitions

  1. The quality of being hardy; Hardship; fatigue

Ancestry of “hardiness”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-nessAppended to adjectives to form nouns meaning "the...
2Middle English-nesseAffixed to adjectives to form abstract nouns...
3Old English-nesUsed to form abstract nouns, usually from...
4Proto-West Germanic-nassīUsed to form abstract nouns, usually from...
5Proto-Germanic-inassuz-ness
6Proto-West Germanic-ī-ness, -th
7Proto-Germanic-į̄-th
8Proto-Indo-European-íh₂—
9Proto-Indo-European-h₂Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -h₂ →