Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “sometimes” come from?

Sometimes derives from Middle English sumtymes, a compound of sum and times meaning at some times or on some occasions.

sometimes (English): On certain occasions, or in certain...

Definitions

  1. On certain occasions, or in certain...

Ancestry of “sometimes”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-sUsed to form regular plurals of nouns; Used to...
2Middle English-esAlternative form of -yssh; Alternative form of...
3Old English-espossessive marker, indicating that an object...
4Proto-Germanic-as—
5Proto-Indo-European-ēsPrimarily forms adjectival bahuvrīhi compounds
6Proto-Indo-European-ess—
7Proto-Indo-European-osCreates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -os →