Where does “unimportance” come from?
Unimportance derives from English importance, which comes from Middle French importance, ultimately tracing through Proto-Indo-European óynos and ano- to the root meaning "in" or "not."
unimportance (English): Lack of importance
Definitions
- Lack of importance
Ancestry of “unimportance”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | importance | The quality or condition of being important or... |
| 2 | Middle French | importance | — |
| 3 | Medieval Latin | importantia | importance; nominative neuter plural of... |
| 4 | Latin | importare | present active infinitive of importō;... |
| 5 | Latin | importo | I bring, carry or convey into; bring in from... |
| 6 | Latin | in- | un-, non-, not; in, within, inside |
| 7 | Latin | in | in, at, on, upon, from; within, while in; into,... |
| 8 | Old Latin | en | in |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | en | in |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁én | in |