English
inverecund
Inverecund comes from Latin inverecundus ‘shameless’, from verecundus ‘modest’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wer- ‘to cover, heed, notice’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wer-‘to cover, heed, notice’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*werēōr‘to be wary’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvereoras vereri‘to revere’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEverecundus‘modest’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinverecundus‘shameless’
- Englishearliest quotation 1909inverecund
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wer-‘to cover, heed, notice’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*werēōr‘to be wary’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvereoras vereri‘to revere’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEverecundus‘modest’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinverecundus‘shameless’
- Englishearliest quotation 1909inverecund
Earliest quotation: 1909, Frederick Rolfe: “Only in puerice do we possess the inverecund innocence…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *wer- ‘to cover, heed, notice’
wear, guard, ward, con, garage, regard, warn, worm, garrison, optic, beware, weir, panorama, ware, verge, wry, reverence, prosaic, guaranty, diorama, vermilion, vermin, milliner, varmint, vermicelli, vermeil, vermiculite, 67 more
through Latin vereor ‘to revere’
Today it means
adj Immodest; shameless.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *wer- / inverecund