Where does “inert” come from?

Inert comes from French inerte, from Latin iners meaning "inactive," composed of the Latin prefix in- and Latin in meaning "not," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ne meaning "not."

inert (English): Unable to move or act; inanimate; In chemistry,...

Definitions

  1. Unable to move or act; inanimate; In chemistry,...

Ancestry of “inert”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchinerteinert, inactive; first-person singular present...
2Latininerswithout skill, unskilled, unskillful,...
3Latinīn-un-, non-, not
4Latinînin, at, on, upon, from (space)
5Latinenlookǃ beholdǃ; reallyǃ?; come onǃ
6Proto-Italicenin
7Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁énin

Words derived from “inert”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁én →Every word from Latin īn- →Every word from Proto-Italic en →