Where does “relentlessly” come from?
Relentlessly derives from English relentless, formed from English relent combined with Old English -līċ and Old English -lēas, with roots tracing through Latin re-, and ultimately to Proto-Indo-European līg- and ḱóm.
relentlessly (English): In a relentless manner
Ancestry of “relentlessly”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | relentless | Unrelenting or unyielding in severity;... |
| 2 | English | relent | Stay; stop; delay; A relenting; To become less... |
| 3 | Middle English | relenten | To become more fluidous or dissolved; to melt; To... |
| 4 | Anglo-Norman | relentir | to relent |
| 5 | Latin | rĕ- | — |
| 6 | Latin | prōdūcō | — |
| 7 | Latin | prō- | — |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | *pro- | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | pro- | toward, forward |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | por- | to give birth; forward, through; going, passage |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |