Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “insignificant” come from?

Insignificant derives from Latin insignificans, formed from in- "not" and significare "to signify," itself from facio "to make" and the Proto-Indo-European root dʰeh₁- "to put or place."

insignificant (English): Not significant; not important, inconsequential,...

Definitions

  1. Not significant; not important, inconsequential,...

Ancestry of “insignificant”, 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 “insignificant”

  • insignificantly
  • insignificancy
Every word from Proto-Indo-European én →