Where does “unsayableness” come from?
unsayableness (English) comes from English unsayable, from English sayable, from English say, from English assay, from Middle English assay, from Anglo-Norman assaier, from Old French essai, from Late Latin exagium — to drive.
unsayableness (English): Quality of being unsayable
Definitions
- Quality of being unsayable
Ancestry of “unsayableness”, step by step
unsayableness traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English unsayable
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | unsayable | Not capable of being said; Not allowed or not fit... |
| 2 | English | sayable | Capable of being pronounced or uttered;... |
| 3 | English | say | To pronounce; To recite; To tell, either verbally... |
| 4 | English | assay | Trial, attempt; Examination and determination;... |
| 5 | Middle English | assay | Examining; investigation, looking into, research;... |
| 6 | Anglo-Norman | assaier | Alternative form of essaier |
| 7 | Old French | essai | trial |
| 8 | Late Latin | exagium | weight; weighing, testing on the balance;... |
| 9 | Latin | exigō | to drive out; expel |
| 10 | Latin | agō | to act, to behave |
| 11 | Proto-Italic | agō | drive; push, impel; do, act |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂éǵeti | to be driving |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂eǵ- | to drive |
via English Ness
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Ness | An Ulster princess and the mother of Conchobar mac Nessa and Findchoem in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. Daughter of Eochaid Sálbuide. Also the mother of Cormac Cond Longas by incest with Conchobar mac Nessa |
| 2 | Middle English | nesse | — |
| 3 | Old English | næs | not, not at all; not; first/third-person singular... |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | nasją | foothill; headland; cape |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | néh₂s | nose |