Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “incarnation” come from?

Incarnation comes from Middle English incarnacion, from Old French incarnacion, from Ecclesiastical Latin incarnatio, derived from Latin incarnare meaning "to make flesh," from in- "in" plus incarno "to flesh," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European (s)ker- "to cut or separate."

incarnation (English): An incarnate being or form; A living being...

Definitions

  1. An incarnate being or form; A living being...

Ancestry of “incarnation”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishincarnacion—
2Old Frenchincarnacionincarnation
3Ecclesiastical Latinincarnatioincarnation; the Incarnation
4Latinincarnaripresent passive infinitive of incarnō; be made...
5Latinin-un-, non-, not; in, within, inside
6Latininin, at, on, upon, from; within, while in; into,...
7Old Latinenin
8Proto-Italicenin
9Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁énin

Words derived from “incarnation”

  • incarnational
  • disincarnation
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁én →