Where does “malfunctional” come from?
malfunctional (English) comes from English functional, from French fonctionnel, from French fonction, from Middle French function, from Latin functiō, from Latin -tiō, from Latin dissertātiō, from Latin dissertus — small stone, pebble; gravel, rubble.
malfunctional (English): Not functioning as intended
Definitions
- Not functioning as intended
Ancestry of “malfunctional”, step by step
malfunctional traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English functional
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | functional | In good working order; Useful; serving a purpose,... |
| 2 | French | fonctionnel | functional; Of or relating to bodily functions |
| 3 | French | fonction | function; role |
| 4 | Middle French | function | function what something's intended use is |
| 5 | Latin | functiō | performance, execution (of a task) |
| 6 | Latin | -tiō | tion, -ation, -ing |
| 7 | Latin | dissertātiō | (spoken) dissertation, discourse, disquisition |
| 8 | Latin | dissertus | arranged, disposed; explained |
| 9 | Latin | disserere | second-person singular future passive indicative... |
| 10 | Latin | dis- | asunder, apart, in two; reversal, removal;... |
| 11 | Latin | calceus | shoe |
| 12 | Latin | calx | limestone; chalk; the finish line |
| 13 | Ancient Greek | χάλιξ | small stone, pebble; gravel, rubble |
via English malfunction
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | malfunction | faulty functioning; failure to function; to... |
| 2 | English | mal- | bad, badly as in maladjusted, malcontent -... |
| 3 | Old French | mal- | bad; badly |
| 4 | Latin | male | badly; wrongly; cruelly, wickedly |
| 5 | Latin | malus | unpleasant, distressing, painful, nasty, bad;... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | μηλέα | apple tree |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | μῆλον | apple; any fruit from a tree; a woman's breast |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)meh₁l- | small animal”; small animal |