English
generous
Generous comes from Latin generōsus ‘of noble birth’, from genus ‘race, stock’, 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‘race, stock’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEgenerōsus‘of noble birth’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600genereux
- Englishearliest quotation 1913generous
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
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‘race, stock’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEgenerōsus‘of noble birth’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600genereux
- Englishearliest quotation 1913generous
Earliest quotation: 1913, Norman Lindsay, A Curate in Bohemia: “Incoherency had overtaken his speech, but he was unaware…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- ‘to produce, beget’
kind, king, nature, nation, native, pregnant, german, engine, ken, genuine, genetic, gentle, naive, genius, kin, noel, indigenous, innate, natal, genesis, nativity, nada, genital, naïve, janata, nee, nascent, puny, degenerate, germ, ingenious, gentile, cognate, degeneration, jaunty, gens, genial, genteel, azadi, gingerly, 101 more
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁os ‘race’
oxygen, genocide, hydrogen, genealogy, glycogen, estrogenic, 28 more
through Proto-Italic *genos
transgender, engender, 14 more
through Latin genus ‘race, stock’
gender, genre, genuinely, regeneration, genus, regenerate, 16 more
Today it means
adj Noble in behaviour or actions; principled, not petty; kind, magnanimous.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- / generous