English
gentle
Gentle comes from Old French gentil ‘high-born, noble’, from Latin gentilis ‘of the same family or clan’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- ‘to produce, to beget, to give birth’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵenh₁-‘to produce, to beget, to give birth’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵénh₁tis‘birth, production’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*gentisreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEgens‘[Roman] clan’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEgentilis‘of the same family or clan’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400gentil‘high-born, noble’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gentil‘courteous, noble’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1590–1592gentle
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵenh₁-‘to produce, to beget, to give birth’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵénh₁tis‘birth, production’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*gentisreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEgens‘[Roman] clan’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEgentilis‘of the same family or clan’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400gentil‘high-born, noble’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gentil‘courteous, noble’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1590–1592gentle
Earliest quotation: c. 1590–1592, William Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew: “[…] For he to-day that sheds his blood with…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- ‘to produce, to beget, to give birth’
king, general, nature, german, native, engine, generation, pregnant, gender, kindness, genuine, genetic, ken, genius, nationalism, generate, indigenous, generous, oxygen, gene, naive, kin, genre, noel, hydrogen, genocide, innate, natal, kinder, nee, genus, nativity, nada, naïve, genital, ingenious, janata, germ, puny, nascent, 106 more
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁tis ‘birth, production’
kind, nation, genetics, genesis, 14 more
through Latin gens ‘[Roman] clan’
through Latin gentilis ‘of the same family or clan’
through Old French gentil ‘high-born, noble’
Today it means
adj Tender and amiable; of a considerate or kindly disposition.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- / gentle