Where does “influence” come from?
Influence derives from Middle English via Old French influence and Medieval Latin influentia, ultimately from Latin in- and Proto-Indo-European bʰel-, originally meaning to flow or swell.
influence (English): The power to affect, control or manipulate...
Definitions
- The power to affect, control or manipulate...
Ancestry of “influence”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | influence | — |
| 2 | Old French | influence | inundation; flooding; influx of water; influence,... |
| 3 | Medieval Latin | influentia | influence |
| 4 | Latin | īnfluēns | flowing into |
| 5 | Latin | īnfluō | to flow or run into |
| 6 | Latin | īn- | un-, non-, not |
| 7 | Latin | în | in, at, on, upon, from (space) |
| 8 | Latin | en | lookǃ beholdǃ; reallyǃ?; come onǃ |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | en | in |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁én | in |