English
inertia
Inertia comes from Latin inertia ‘lack of art or skill, inactivity, indolence’, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂r̥tís ‘fitting’, and ultimately from *h₂er- ‘to join’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂er-‘to join’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂r̥tís‘fitting’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*artisreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEars‘skill, art’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEiners‘unskilled, inactive’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinertia‘lack of art or skill, inactivity, indolence’
- Englishearliest quotation 1837same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂er-‘to join’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂r̥tís‘fitting’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*artisreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEars‘skill, art’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEiners‘unskilled, inactive’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinertia‘lack of art or skill, inactivity, indolence’
- Englishearliest quotation 1837same form
Earliest quotation: 1837, Thomas Carlyle, London: James Fraser: “Men […] have immense irresolution and inertia.”
The story
Something close to the modern physics sense was first used in New Latin by Johannes Kepler.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂er- ‘to join’
reason, ready, order, rate, army, arm, article, alarm, ordinary, ratio, harmony, armor, coordinate, coordination, anarchy, harmonic, ornament, subordinate, arthritis, arithmetic, articulate, ornate, harmonious, ordination, aristocratic, armament, adorn, artisan, articulation, ordinate, armadillo, harmonize, artistically, ordinator, armature, archon, rime, ordinal, ordo, rta, 75 more
through Proto-Italic *artis
through Latin ars ‘skill, art’
Today it means
noun The property of a body that resists any change to its uniform motion; equivalent to its mass.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂er- / inertia