Where does “tremendous” come from?
Tremendous comes from Latin tremendus, the gerundive of Latin tremo meaning "to tremble," derived from Proto-Indo-European trem-, itself from Proto-Indo-European ter-.
tremendous (English): awe-inspiring; terrific; Notable for its size,...
Definitions
- awe-inspiring; terrific; Notable for its size,...
Ancestry of “tremendous”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | tremendus | which is to be trembled, shaken, shuddered at,... |
| 2 | Latin | tremō | to tremble, shake, shudder at |
| 3 | Proto-Italic | tremō | — |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | trem- | to tremble |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | ter- | tender, weak; young creature |
| 6 | Italian | termine | end, close; limit, term, date, time; term, word |
| 7 | Latin | terminus | a boundary, limit, end |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | termenos | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | térmn̥ | boundary, end |