Where does “insubstantial” come from?
Insubstantial comes from Old French insubstantiel, from Latin substantiālis with the prefix in- meaning "not," tracing back through Proto-Indo-European roots for negation and being.
insubstantial (English): Lacking substance; not real or strong
Definitions
- Lacking substance; not real or strong
Ancestry of “insubstantial”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | substantial | Having a substance; actually existing; Not... |
| 2 | French | substantiel | substantial |
| 3 | Latin | substantialis | of or pertaining to the essence or substance;... |
| 4 | Latin | substantia | substance, essence, material, contents; fortune,... |
| 5 | Latin | substāns | — |
| 6 | Latin | substō | to hold out, to stand firm |
| 7 | Latin | sub | under, beneath; behind; at the feet of |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | supo | under |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | upó | under, below |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | h₃ewp- | — |