Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “irresponsible” come from?

Irresponsible derives from English in- (not) + responsible, from Middle English in- (not), from Latin in- (not), from Latin in (in), from Proto-Indo-European ne (not), oyd- (to go), and en (in).

irresponsible (English): Not responsible; exempt from legal...

Definitions

  1. Not responsible; exempt from legal...

Ancestry of “irresponsible”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishresponsibleHaving the duty of taking care of something;...
2Middle Frenchresponsable—
3Old Frenchresponsable—
4Latinrespōnsus—
5Latinrespondeō—
6Latinrĕ-—
7Latinprōdūcō—
8Latinprō-—
9Proto-Italic*pro-—
10Proto-Indo-Europeanpro-toward, forward
11Proto-Indo-Europeanpor-to give birth; forward, through; going, passage
12Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
13Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “irresponsible”

  • irresponsibly
  • irresponsibleness
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →