Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “polite” come from?

Polite comes from Latin politus, past participle of polio, derived from Proto-Indo-European pelh₂-, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European pel-, related to Ancient Greek πολιός and Proto-Hellenic poľľós from Proto-Indo-European polH-yós and pelH-.

polite (English): Well-mannered, civilized; Smooth, polished,...

Definitions

  1. Well-mannered, civilized; Smooth, polished,...

Ancestry of “polite”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinpolītus—
2Latinpoliō—

Words derived from “polite”

  • politely
  • politeness
  • unpolite
  • unpoliteness
  • overpolite
  • superpolite
  • politesome
  • superpoliteness
  • over-polite
  • nonpolite
Every word from Latin poliō →