Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “presentism” come from?

Presentism derives from English present, from Ancient Greek -ισμός, from Ancient Greek -μός, from Latin praesens meaning "being before or at hand," from Latin sum meaning "to be," from Proto-Indo-European h₁ésmi.

presentism (English): The view that neither the future nor the past...

Definitions

  1. The view that neither the future nor the past...

Ancestry of “presentism”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishpresentRelating to now, for the time being; current;...
2Middle Englishpresent—
3Old Frenchpresentgift; present; present
4Latinpraesēns—
5Latinpraeessepresent active infinitive of praesum; be in front...
6LatinpraesumI am before something; I preside or rule over; I...
7Latinprae-before; in front; in charge
8Proto-Italicprai-—
9Proto-Indo-Europeanpreh₂-before, in front
10Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
11Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →