Where does “licentiousness” come from?

Licentiousness derives from Middle English -nesse, Latin licentia (permission), Latin licens, Latin licet (it is allowed), and Proto-Indo-European leyk-.

licentiousness (English): The property of being licentious

Definitions

  1. The property of being licentious

Ancestry of “licentiousness”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-nessAppended to adjectives to form nouns meaning "the...
2Middle English-nesseAffixed to adjectives to form abstract nouns...
3Old English-nesUsed to form abstract nouns, usually from...
4Proto-West Germanic-nassīUsed to form abstract nouns, usually from...
5Proto-Germanic-inassuz-ness
6Proto-West Germanic-ness, -th
7Proto-Germanic-į̄-th
8Proto-Indo-European-íh₂
9Proto-Indo-European-h₂Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -h₂Every word from English -nessEvery word from Old English -nes