Where does “inserviceable” come from?
inserviceable (English) comes from English serviceable, from Old French servisable, from Old French servise, from Latin servitium, from Latin -itia, from Latin -ia, from Latin -ius, from Proto-Italic -jōs — Creates adjectives from noun or verb stems.
Ancestry of “inserviceable”, step by step
inserviceable traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English serviceable
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | serviceable | Easy to service; Repairable instead of... |
| 2 | Old French | servisable | — |
| 3 | Old French | servise | service; servitude; vasselage; church service |
| 4 | Latin | servitium | slavery, servitude; slaves; service |
| 5 | Latin | -itia | -ness, -ity |
| 6 | Latin | -ia | Used to form a feminine abstract noun, usually... |
| 7 | Latin | -ius | forming adjectives from nouns; nominative neuter... |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | -jōs | Forms comparative adjectives |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -yós | Creates adjectives from noun or verb stems |