Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “insensitive” come from?

Insensitive derives from Middle French insensitif, from Latin in- (not) plus sensitivus, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European roots meaning not to perceive or feel.

insensitive (English): Not expressing normal physical feeling; Not...

Definitions

  1. Not expressing normal physical feeling; Not...

Ancestry of “insensitive”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Englishin-in, into, towards, within; in, into; Used with...
2Middle Englishin-—
3Old Englishin-in, into; on, upon; internal, positioned on the...
4Old Englishinin; Alternative form of inn
5Proto-West Germanic*in—
6Proto-Germanicinin; into
7Proto-Indo-Europeanénin

Words derived from “insensitive”

  • insensitively
  • insensitiveness
  • photoinsensitive
  • radioinsensitive
Every word from Proto-Indo-European én →