Where does “thinness” come from?
Thinness comes from Middle English thynnesse, derived from Old English þynnes, meaning the quality or state of being thin.
thinness (English): The state or quality of being thin
Definitions
- The state or quality of being thin
Ancestry of “thinness”, step by step
thinness traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English thin
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | thin | Having little thickness or extent from one... |
| 2 | Middle English | thinne | thin, narrow, skinny, slender; weak; sparse,... |
| 3 | Old English | þynne | thin |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | þunnī | thin |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | þunnuz | thin |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ténh₂us | thin |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | tenh₂- | to stretch, to extend |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ten- | to stretch, to extend |