Where does “十中八九” come from?

十中八九 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 中, from Japanese 中今, from Japanese 今 — now; just now; soon.

十中八九 (Japanese): mostly, probably

Definitions

  1. mostly, probably

Ancestry of “十中八九”, step by step

十中八九 traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 中

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese中middle, medium; average; neither good nor poor;...
2Japanese中今the present, as a privileged moment in eternity
3Japanese今now; just now; soon

via Japanese 八

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese八eight, 8; eight; Short for 八の字
2Middle Chinese八—

via Japanese 九

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese九nine; ninth; the ninth
2Old Japanese九—
Every word from Japanese 今 →Every word from Japanese 中 →Every word from Japanese 中今 →