Where does “unprecedented” come from?
Unprecedented derives from English precedent, Latin unus and cedo, and Proto-Indo-European óynos, ano-, ne, and per-, tracing a sense development from "going before" or "not done before."
unprecedented (English): Never before seen, done, or experienced; without...
Definitions
- Never before seen, done, or experienced; without...
Ancestry of “unprecedented”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | precedent | An act in the past which may be used as an... |
| 2 | Latin | praecēdēns | preceding |
| 3 | Latin | praecēdō | to precede (go before) |
| 4 | Latin | prae- | before; in front; in charge |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | prai- | pre-, before |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | preh₂- | before, in front |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |