Where does “simpleminded” come from?
Simpleminded derives from English simple and English mind, tracing through French simple and Latin plico, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European sem- meaning to fit or join together.
simpleminded (English): stupid; unsophisticated; lacking subtlety
Definitions
- stupid; unsophisticated; lacking subtlety
Ancestry of “simpleminded”, step by step
simpleminded traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English minded
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | minded | Having a mind for something or a certain way of... |
| 2 | English | mind | The ability for rational thought; The ability to... |
| 3 | Middle English | minde | — |
| 4 | Old English | mynd | mind |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | gamundiz | remembrance, memory; commemoration, memorial |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | ga- | Indicates association or togetherness; co-;... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱóm | beside, near, by, with |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 9 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 10 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 11 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 12 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 13 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 14 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 15 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |
via English simple
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | simple | Uncomplicated; taken by itself, with nothing... |
| 2 | Middle English | symple | virtuous, godly, without sin; simple, spartan,... |
| 3 | Old French | simple | innocent; mere; simple; honest; without pretense |
| 4 | Latin | simplex | single; simple, plain, uncompounded; pure,... |
| 5 | Latin | -plex | -fold |
| 6 | Latin | plicō | to fold, bend or flex; to roll up |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | pleḱ- | to fold, plait, weave |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pel- | to cover, to wrap; skin, hide, cloth; to fold |