English
generic
Generic comes from Middle French générique, from Latin genus ‘genus, kind’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- ‘to produce, beget’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵenh₁-‘to produce, beget’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵénh₁os‘race’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*genosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEgenus‘genus, kind’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600générique
- Englishearliest quotation 1864generic
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵenh₁-‘to produce, beget’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵénh₁os‘race’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*genosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEgenus‘genus, kind’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600générique
- Englishearliest quotation 1864generic
Earliest quotation: 1864, Walter Bagehot, Tennyson: “[…] the essence is that such self-describing poets describe…”.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- ‘to produce, beget’
kind, king, nature, nation, native, pregnant, german, engine, ken, genius, indigenous, genuine, naive, gentle, kin, noel, genetic, innate, natal, genesis, nativity, nada, naïve, genital, ingenious, janata, nee, nascent, puny, degenerate, germ, gentile, cognate, degeneration, jaunty, gens, genial, azadi, genteel, gingerly, 101 more
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁os ‘race’
oxygen, hydrogen, genocide, genealogy, glycogen, estrogenic, 28 more
through Proto-Italic *genos
transgender, engender, 14 more
through Latin genus ‘genus, kind’
gender, genre, genuinely, genus, regeneration, regenerate, 16 more
Today it means
adj Very broad; pertaining or appropriate to large classes or groups as opposed to specific instances.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- / generic