Etymograph

English

enmity

Enmity comes from Middle English enemyte ‘a feeling of enmity or hostility’, from Latin inimīcus ‘enemy’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₃emh₃- ‘to grab, to grasp, to seize, to take hold,…’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₃emh₃-‘to grab, to grasp, to seize, to take hold, tackle, touch’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*amāō‘to get hold of’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEamō‘to love’
  4. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEamīcus‘friendly, well-disposed, amicable’
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinimīcus‘enemy’
  6. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*inimicitasreconstructed
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400enemisté
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500enemyte‘a feeling of enmity or hostility’
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1922enmity

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₃emh₃-‘to grab, to grasp, to seize, to take hold, tackle, touch’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*amāō‘to get hold of’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEamō‘to love’
  4. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEamīcus‘friendly, well-disposed, amicable’
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinimīcus‘enemy’
  6. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*inimicitasreconstructed
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400enemisté
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500enemyte‘a feeling of enmity or hostility’
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1922enmity

Earliest quotation: 1922, Eleanour Sinclair Rohde, The Old English Herbals: “We know from their literature that to our Saxon…”

Linked words

through Latin amō ‘to love’

amour, amenity, 20 more

through Latin amīcus ‘friendly, well-disposed, amicable’

amicable, amiable, amigo, amity, 5 more

through Latin inimīcus ‘enemy’

enemy, inimical, 3 more

Today it means

noun The quality of being an enemy; a hostile or unfriendly disposition.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₃emh₃- / enmity

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