Where does “unfathomable” come from?
Unfathomable derives from English fathom, Latin unus and -abilis, and Proto-Indo-European óynos, ano-, ne, and h₂ent-, ultimately tracing a sense of negation and extension through multiple language layers.
unfathomable (English): Impossible to fathom or understand; Difficult to...
Definitions
- Impossible to fathom or understand; Difficult to...
Ancestry of “unfathomable”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Un- | not |
| 2 | English | still | Not moving; calm; Not effervescing; not... |
| 3 | Old English | stillan | become calm, abate, subside; calm, pacify,... |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | stillijan | to make still, quiet |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | -jan | Creates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates... |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -janą | Derives denominatives from nouns and factitives... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 9 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |