Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “somethingness” come from?

somethingness (English) comes from English something, from Middle English somþyng, from Old English sum, from Proto-West Germanic *sum, from Proto-Germanic sumaz, from Proto-Indo-European sem- — together, one.

somethingness (English): The quality of being something

Definitions

  1. The quality of being something

Ancestry of “somethingness”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishsomethingAn uncertain or unspecified thing; one thing; A...
2Middle Englishsomþyng—
3Old Englishsumsome
4Proto-West Germanic*sum—
5Proto-Germanicsumazsome , a certain; some, certain
6Proto-Indo-Europeansem-together, one
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sem- →