Where does “somebody” come from?
Somebody comes from Middle English body, Old English sum, Proto-Germanic sumaz, and Proto-Indo-European sem-, meaning to designate an unspecified person.
somebody (English): Some unspecified person; A recognised or...
Definitions
- Some unspecified person; A recognised or...
Ancestry of “somebody”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | some | A certain number, at least two; An indefinite... |
| 2 | Middle English | som | some |
| 3 | Old English | sum | some |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | *sum | — |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | sumaz | some , a certain; some, certain |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | sem- | together, one |
Words derived from “somebody”