Where does “inherit” come from?
Inherit comes from Middle English enheriten, from Old French enheriter, from Latin inheredito, combining the prefix in- with Latin in meaning "not" and Proto-Indo-European ne meaning "not."
inherit (English): To receive property, a title, etc., by legal succession or bequest after the previous owner's death
Definitions
- To receive property, a title, etc., by legal succession or bequest after the previous owner's death
Ancestry of “inherit”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | enheriten | — |
| 2 | Old French | enheriter | to inherit |
| 3 | Latin | inheredito | I appoint an heir |
| 4 | Latin | hērēditō | to drive out, destroy |
| 5 | Latin | hērēditas | inheritance |
| 6 | Latin | -tās | ty, -dom, -hood, -ness, -ship |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -teh₂ts | Used to form nouns representing state of being |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -teh₂ | Used to form nouns representing state of being |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -tós | Creates verbal adjectives from verb stems |