Where does “subservient” come from?
Subservient derives from Latin subserviens, the present participle of subservio meaning to serve under, formed from sub meaning under and ser- meaning to serve.
subservient (English): Useful in an inferior capacity; Obsequiously...
Definitions
- Useful in an inferior capacity; Obsequiously...
Ancestry of “subservient”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Latin | subserviens | |
| 2 | Latin | subservio | I serve; am subservient to |
| 3 | Latin | serviō | — |
| 4 | Latin | servus | a servant; a serf; a slave |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | serwos | guardian |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ser-wo-s | guardian |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ser- | to flow; to guard; to bind, to tie together |
Words derived from “subservient”