Where does “heterosexuality” come from?
Heterosexuality is an English formation from hetero- and -sexuality, ultimately deriving from Latin -itas and Proto-Indo-European -it-, a suffix forming abstract nouns from adjectives.
heterosexuality (English): The state of being sexually and romantically...
Definitions
- The state of being sexually and romantically...
Ancestry of “heterosexuality”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | heterosexual | Sexually attracted to members of the opposite... |
| 2 | English | -sexual | Forms a noun or adjective describing a state or... |
| 3 | English | sexual | Arising from the fact of being male or female;... |
| 4 | Latin | sexuālis | sexual |
| 5 | Latin | sexus | division; sex; gender |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | seksus | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | séksus | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | sek- | to cut, cut off, sever |