Where does “not’ve” come from?
not’ve (English) comes from English Not, from Middle English not, from Middle English nought, from Old English nōwiht, from Old English ne, from Old English ealles, from Old English -es, from Proto-Germanic -as — Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;...
Ancestry of “not’ve”, step by step
not’ve traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Not
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Not | — |
| 2 | Middle English | not | not; nothing, nought; nobody, no person |
| 3 | Middle English | nought | nothing, none; not; iniquitous, wicked |
| 4 | Old English | nōwiht | — |
| 5 | Old English | ne | not; or, and not; "ne... ne..." is used to mean "... |
| 6 | Old English | ealles | completely, wholly, entirely; totally,... |
| 7 | Old English | -es | possessive marker, indicating that an object... |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | -as | used in formation of adverbs |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -ēs | Primarily forms adjectival bahuvrīhi compounds |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -ess | — |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | -os | Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;... |
via English ’ve
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | ’ve | in its sense marking the perfect or retrospective aspect |