Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “intelligibly” come from?

Intelligibly derives from Middle French intelligiblement, from Latin intelligibilis meaning "able to be understood," built from intelligere "to understand" and the Latin adjective suffix -ibilis, with deeper roots in Proto-Germanic -līkaz and Proto-Indo-European ḱóm.

intelligibly (English): In an intelligible manner

Definitions

  1. In an intelligible manner

Ancestry of “intelligibly”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishintelligibleCapable of being understood; clear to the mind
2Middle Frenchintelligibleintelligible
3LatinintelligibilisAlternative form of intellegibilis
4Latinintellegibilisunderstandable, intelligible; perceivable
5Latinintellegō—
6Latinlegō—
7Latinlēx—
8Proto-Italiclēg-—
9Proto-Indo-Europeanleǵ-s—
10Proto-Indo-Europeanleǵ-to gather, collect, with derivatives meaning to...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European leǵ- →