Where does “psychopath” come from?
Psychopath derives from German psychopatisch, which combines Ancient Greek ψυχή and the Ancient Greek feminine suffix -η, itself from Proto-Indo-European -eh₂.
psychopath (English): A person with a personality disorder indicated by...
Definitions
- A person with a personality disorder indicated by...
Ancestry of “psychopath”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | German | psychopathisch | psychopathic |
| 2 | Dutch | -isch | -ic; -ian |
| 3 | German | -isch | an adjectival suffix, often matching -ic and... |
| 4 | Middle High German | -isch | — |
| 5 | Old High German | -isc | used to form adjectives |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | -isk | Creates adjectives from nouns |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | -iskaz | Forms adjectives from nouns with the sense of... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -iskos | Characteristic of, typical of, pertaining to |
Words derived from “psychopath”