English
innumerable
Innumerable comes from Latin innumerābilis ‘innumerable, countless’, from numerus ‘number’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *nem- ‘to assign, allot’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*nem-‘to assign, allot’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*nomezosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnumerus‘number’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEnumerābilis‘countable, numerable’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinnumerābilis‘innumerable, countless’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500innumerable
- Englishearliest quotation 1889same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*nem-‘to assign, allot’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*nomezosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnumerus‘number’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEnumerābilis‘countable, numerable’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinnumerābilis‘innumerable, countless’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500innumerable
- Englishearliest quotation 1889same form
Earliest quotation: 1889, Mark Twain pseudonym; Samuel Langhorne C, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court: “Soon we could see the innumerable banners fluttering, and…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *nem- ‘to assign, allot’
numb, nomadic, nomad, nim, nome, naam, luma, enumeration, numismatics, enumerate, 25 more
through Latin numerus ‘number’
number, numerous, numeric, numeral, numeracy, numero, numerator, 9 more
Today it means
adj Not capable of being counted, enumerated, or numbered.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *nem- / innumerable