English
information
Information comes from Middle English enformacioun, from Anglo-Norman informacioun, from Latin īnfōrmātiō ‘formation, conception; education’, from īnfōrmō ‘to form, give shape to’, and ultimately from fōrma.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfōrma
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEfōrmō‘to shape’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEīnfōrmō‘to form, give shape to’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEīnfōrmātiō‘formation, conception; education’
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400informacioun
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500enformacioun
- Englishearliest quotation 1592information
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfōrma
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEfōrmō‘to shape’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEīnfōrmō‘to form, give shape to’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEīnfōrmātiō‘formation, conception; education’
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400informacioun
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500enformacioun
- Englishearliest quotation 1592information
Earliest quotation: 1592, Henry IV of France, A Discourse of the Great Overthrow: “And ſo much yet did this contagion breake foorth…”
Formed from inform + -ation
Latin fōrma
Latin fōrmō ‘to form, make’
Latin īnfōrmō ‘to shape, form, train, instruct, educate’
Old French enformer
Middle English informen
English inform
Linked words
through Ancient Greek μορφή ‘shape, form’
morphology, morph, uniformity, deformable, 30 more
through Etruscan *morma
formula, uniform, formal, transformation, forma, 21 more
through Latin fōrma
through Latin fōrmō ‘to shape, form, fashion, format’
Today it means
noun Something that provides a definitive characterization or description of the nature and attributes of a specified entity.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin fōrma / information