Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “sinful” come from?

Sinful comes from Old English synful, derived from Old English synn, from Proto-Germanic sundijō, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European pleh₁-, meaning to fill or be full.

sinful (English): constituting a sin; being morally or religiously...

Definitions

  1. constituting a sin; being morally or religiously...

Ancestry of “sinful”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishsynful—
2Old Englishsynfulsinful; a sinner
3Old Englishsynnsin
4Proto-West Germanicsunnjuresponsibility; care; concern; worry; anxiety
5Proto-Germanicsunjōtruth, sooth; denial, protest
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁s-ónt-ih₂—
7Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁sóntsactive participle of *h₁ésti; being, existence;...
8Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁ēs-—

Words derived from “sinful”

  • sinfully
  • unsinful
  • unsinfully
  • unsinfulness
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁ēs- →