Where does “simple” come from?
Simple comes from Middle English simple, from French simple, from Latin simplus, ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European roots meaning to fold or join.
simple (English): Uncomplicated; taken by itself, with nothing...
Definitions
- Uncomplicated; taken by itself, with nothing...
Ancestry of “simple”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | symple | virtuous, godly, without sin; simple, spartan,... |
| 2 | Old French | simple | innocent; mere; simple; honest; without pretense |
| 3 | Latin | simplex | single; simple, plain, uncompounded; pure,... |
| 4 | Latin | -plex | -fold |
| 5 | Latin | plicō | to fold, bend or flex; to roll up |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | pleḱ- | to fold, plait, weave |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | pel- | to cover, to wrap; skin, hide, cloth; to fold |