English
incisive
Incisive comes from Medieval Latin incīsīvus ‘cutting, penetrating’, from Latin incīdō ‘to cut in, cut through’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kh₂eyd-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kh₂eyd-‘to cut, hew’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*kh₂éydetireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kaidō‘to cut, hew, fell’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcaedō‘to cut, hew, cut down, fell, cut off, cut to pieces’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEincīdō‘to cut in, cut through’
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500incīsīvus‘cutting, penetrating’
- Englishearliest quotation 1856incisive
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kh₂eyd-‘to cut, hew’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*kh₂éydetireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kaidō‘to cut, hew, fell’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcaedō‘to cut, hew, cut down, fell, cut off, cut to pieces’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEincīdō‘to cut in, cut through’
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500incīsīvus‘cutting, penetrating’
- Englishearliest quotation 1856incisive
Earliest quotation: 1856, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Second Book: “And her incisive smile accrediting / That treason of…”
The story
Late Middle English (in the sense “cutting, penetrating”), borrowed from Medieval Latin incīsīvus, from incīdō (‘to cut in, cut through’) + -īvus (“-ive”, adjectival suffix).
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kh₂eyd- ‘to cut, hew’
through Proto-Italic *kaidō ‘to cut, hew, fell’
through Latin caedō ‘to cut, hew, cut down, fell, cut off, cut to…’
decision, cement, precise, concise, circumcision, chisel, scissor, excision, caesium, 29 more
through Latin incīdō ‘to cut in, cut through’
Today it means
adj Intelligently analytical and concise. (of a person or mental process)
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *kh₂eyd- / incisive