Where does “criminal” come from?

criminal (Romanian) comes from French criminel, from Old French criminal, from Latin crīminālis, from Latin crīmen, from Proto-Italic kreimen, from Proto-Indo-European kréymn̥, from Proto-Indo-European krey- — to sift, separate, divide.

criminal (Romanian): criminal, felon, perpetrator, offender,...

Definitions

  1. criminal, felon, perpetrator, offender,...

Ancestry of “criminal”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchcriminelcriminal
2Old Frenchcriminalcriminal; illegal; against the law
3Latincrīmināliscriminal
4Latincrīmena judicial decision, verdict, or judgment
5Proto-Italickreimen—
6Proto-Indo-Europeankréymn̥—
7Proto-Indo-Europeankrey-to sift, separate, divide

Words derived from “criminal”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European krey- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European kréymn̥ →Every word from Proto-Italic kreimen →