Where does “impetuous” come from?
Impetuous comes from Middle English impetuous, from Old French impetueux, from Latin impetuosus, derived from impetus meaning "attack" or "onset," itself from impeto meaning "to rush at," from peto meaning "to seek" or "to rush," with the prefix in-.
impetuous (English): Making arbitrary decisions, especially in an...
Definitions
- Making arbitrary decisions, especially in an...
Ancestry of “impetuous”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | impetuous | — |
| 2 | Old French | impetueux | forceful; violent; strong |
| 3 | Late Latin | impetuosus | violent |
| 4 | Latin | impetus | an attack, assault; a rapid motion; a making for |
| 5 | Latin | impetō | — |
| 6 | Latin | īn- | — |
| 7 | Latin | în | — |
| 8 | Latin | en | lookǃ beholdǃ; reallyǃ?; come onǃ |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | en | in |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁én | in |
Words derived from “impetuous”