Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “infantine” come from?

Infantine comes from French enfantin, derived from Latin infans meaning "unable to speak," from in- "not" and fans "speaking," with the diminutive suffix -inus.

infantine (English): Infantile; childish

Definitions

  1. Infantile; childish

Ancestry of “infantine”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchinfantin—
2Frenchenfantinchildlike, childish; child's, for children
3Frenchenfantchild
4Middle Frenchenfantchild
5Old Frenchenfantchild
6Latinīnfāntem—
7Latinīnfāns—
8Latinīn-—
9Latinîn—
10Latinenlookǃ beholdǃ; reallyǃ?; come onǃ
11Proto-Italicenin
12Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁énin
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁én →