Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “incriminate” come from?

Incriminate comes from Medieval Latin incriminatum, from Latin incrimino, combining Latin in and crimen, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European roots meaning "to sift" or "distinguish."

incriminate (English): To accuse or bring criminal charges against; To...

Definitions

  1. To accuse or bring criminal charges against; To...

Ancestry of “incriminate”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Medieval Latinincriminatus—
2Latinincrimino—
3LatincriminoI accuse, indict
4Latincrīmen—
5Proto-Italickreimen—
6Proto-Indo-Europeankréymn̥—
7Proto-Indo-Europeankrey-to sift, separate, divide

Words derived from “incriminate”

  • incriminating
  • incriminatory
  • nonincriminating
  • unincriminating
  • nonincriminatory
  • self-incriminate
Every word from Proto-Indo-European krey- →