Where does “insensible” come from?
insensible (Old French) comes from Late Latin insensibilis, from Latin sensibilis, from Latin sensus, from Latin sentire, from Latin sentio, from Proto-Italic sentjō, from Proto-Indo-European sent-, from Proto-Indo-European h₁es- — to be.
Ancestry of “insensible”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Late Latin | insensibilis | imperceptible, insensible; undetectable |
| 2 | Latin | sensibilis | perceptible, sensible; detectable |
| 3 | Latin | sensus | felt, perceived with the senses, having felt;... |
| 4 | Latin | sentire | present active infinitive of sentiō;... |
| 5 | Latin | sentio | I feel, I sense, I perceive; I perceive, I am... |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | sentjō | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | sent- | to head for, to go, to travel; to feel |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁es- | to be |