English
abasement
Abasement comes from Middle French abaissement ‘astonishment’.
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600abaissement‘astonishment’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form
- Englishearliest quotation 2004abasement
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600abaissement‘astonishment’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form
- Englishearliest quotation 2004abasement
Earliest quotation: 2004, Alan Hollinghurst, London: Picador: “He was wearing cavalry twill trousers and a buff…”
Formed from abase + -ment
Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- ‘to come, to step’
Old French abaissier ‘to lower, to reduce’
Middle French abaisser
Middle English abaishen
English abase
Every English word from Middle French abaissement
Today it means
noun The act of abasing, humbling, or bringing low.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle French abaissement / abasement