Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “malfeasance” come from?

Malfeasance derives from Old French malfaisance, from Old French malfaire, from Latin malefacio, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European dʰeh₁- meaning to do or make.

malfeasance (English): Wrongdoing; Misconduct or wrongdoing, especially...

Definitions

  1. Wrongdoing; Misconduct or wrongdoing, especially...

Ancestry of “malfeasance”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchmalfaisance—
2Latinmalefaciō—
3Latinfaciō—
4Latin-toriumnominative neuter singular of -tōrius; accusative...
5Latin-tōrius—
6Latin-tor-er
7Proto-Italic-tōr—
8Proto-Indo-European-tōrDerives agent nouns from verbs, denoting someone...
9Proto-Indo-European-tor-s—
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tor-s →