Where does “incivility” come from?

Incivility derives from Middle French incivilité, Late Latin incivilitas, and Latin incivilis, formed from the prefix in- and civilis, ultimately tracing to Proto-Indo-European roots meaning "not" and "to lie down" or "settle."

incivility (English): The state of being uncivil; lack of courtesy;...

Definitions

  1. The state of being uncivil; lack of courtesy;...

Ancestry of “incivility”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Frenchincivilité—
2Latinincivilitas—
3Latinincivilisimpolite, uncivil
4Latincīvīlis—
5Latin-ilis-ile
6Proto-Italic-elis—
7Proto-Indo-European-elis—
8Proto-Indo-European-lósForms agent nouns from verbal roots
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -lós →Every word from Latin -ilis →Every word from Latin cīvīlis →