Etymology Explorer › French

Where does “imbécilement” come from?

imbécilement (French) comes from French imbécile, from Latin imbēcillus, from Latin Bacillus, from Latin -illus, from Latin -lus, from Proto-Italic -elos, from Proto-Indo-European -e-lós, from Proto-Indo-European -lós — Forms agent nouns from verbal roots.

imbécilement (French): stupidly; idiotically

Definitions

  1. stupidly; idiotically

Ancestry of “imbécilement”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchimbécilestupid, foolish, acting like an imbecile;...
2Latinimbēcillus—
3LatinBacillus—
4Latin-illusUsed to form adjectives from nouns
5Latin-lusAlternative form of -ulus; diminutive suffix
6Proto-Italic-elos—
7Proto-Indo-European-e-lós—
8Proto-Indo-European-lósForms agent nouns from verbal roots
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -lós →