English
hebetude
Hebetude comes from Late Latin hebetūdō ‘Bluntness, dullness’, and goes back to Latin hebeō.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEhebeō‘to be blunt or dull’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEhebes‘blunt, dull’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEhebetūdō‘Bluntness, dullness’
- Englishearliest quotation 1735hebetude
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEhebeō‘to be blunt or dull’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEhebes‘blunt, dull’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEhebetūdō‘Bluntness, dullness’
- Englishearliest quotation 1735hebetude
Earliest quotation: 1735, Craftsman, Feb. 22 [Julian calendar]. Nº 451.: “[T]here are ſeveral Species of Writing, in which a…”
Every English word from Latin hebeō
Today it means
noun Mental lethargy or dullness.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin hebeō / hebetude