Where does “lesser-known” come from?
lesser-known (English) comes from English lesser, from English -er, from Middle English -er, from Old French -er, from Latin -āre, from Proto-Italic -āō, from Proto-Indo-European -eh₂yéti, from Proto-Indo-European -yéti — he, she.
lesser-known (English): Not as well-known or widely known as others of the same kind
Definitions
- Not as well-known or widely known as others of the same kind
Ancestry of “lesser-known”, step by step
lesser-known traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English lesser
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | lesser | Of two (or, rarely, more than two) things: the smaller in size (littler), in value, in importance etc |
| 2 | English | -er | A person or thing that does an action indicated... |
| 3 | Middle English | -er | agentive suffix; agent noun suffix |
| 4 | Old French | -er | Alternative form of -ier, verbal suffix;... |
| 5 | Latin | -āre | first conjugation |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | -āō | Forms primarily denominative verbs |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -eh₂yéti | Creates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 10 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |
via English known
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | known | Identified as a specific type; famous, renowned;... |
| 2 | Middle English | knowen | to know |
| 3 | Old English | cnāwan | to know, perceive, recognise; to know, recognise,... |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | knāan | to recognise, to know |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | knēaną | to know, recognise, understand |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵneh₃- | to know |