Where does “utility” come from?
Utility derives from French -ité, Latin -itas, Latin -ilis, and Latin ut through Proto-Indo-European -it-, tracing a suffix chain that built abstract nouns from the root meaning useful.
utility (English): The state or condition of being useful;...
Definitions
- The state or condition of being useful;...
Ancestry of “utility”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | utilite | benefit, gain, profit |
| 2 | Old French | utilite | — |
| 3 | Latin | ūtilitas | usefulness, utility |
| 4 | Latin | ūtilis | useful, serviceable, beneficial, profitable, advantageous; helpful |
| 5 | Latin | ūtor | to use, make use of, employ |
| 6 | Proto-Slavic | *ǫtorъ | croze |
| 7 | Proto-Slavic | torъ | paddock, pen |
| 8 | Proto-Slavic | terti | to rub, to scrape; to polish |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | terh₁- | to rub, turn; to drill, pierce |