Where does “hypothesis” come from?
Hypothesis comes from Middle French hypothese, from Latin hypothesis, from Ancient Greek ὑπόθεσις, derived from ὑποτίθημι, which combines ὑπό- with τίθημι meaning to place or set, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European dʰeh₁-.
hypothesis (English): Used loosely, a tentative conjecture explaining...
Definitions
- Used loosely, a tentative conjecture explaining...
Ancestry of “hypothesis”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle French | hypothese | hypothesis |
| 2 | Latin | hypothesis | hypothesis |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | ὑπόθεσις | proposal, proposed action; policy, intention;... |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | ὑποτίθημι | I set before, suggest; put down, pledge; to... |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | ὑπο- | under, sub-, hypo-; denoting a small degree,... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | ὑπό | |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | upó | under, below |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₃ewp- | — |