Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “linear” come from?

Linear derives from Latin linearis, formed with the adjective suffix -aris from Latin linum, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European līno- meaning flax or linen thread.

linear (English): Having the form of a line; straight or roughly...

Definitions

  1. Having the form of a line; straight or roughly...

Ancestry of “linear”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinlinearisconsisting of lines, linear, lineal;...
2Latinlīnea—
3Latinlīnum—
4Proto-Italiclīnom—
5Proto-Indo-Europeanlīnomflax

Words derived from “linear”

  • nonlinear
  • linearly
  • linearity
  • nonlinearity
  • curvilinear
  • linearization
  • bilinear
  • unilinear
  • nonlinearly
  • interlinear
  • linearize
  • multilinear
  • trilinear
  • linearisation
  • superlinear
  • quasilinear
  • sublinear
  • linearizable
  • semilinear
  • curvilinearity
  • linearizability
  • curvilinearly
  • linearise
  • linearizer
Every word from Proto-Indo-European līnom →