English
invidious
Invidious comes from Latin invidiōsus ‘envious, invidious, hostile’, from invidia ‘envy, ill will’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weyd- ‘to see’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weyd-‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*widéh₁yetireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*widēō‘to see’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvideō‘to see’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinvidia‘envy, ill will’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinvidiōsus‘envious, invidious, hostile’
- Englishearliest quotation 1753invidious
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weyd-‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*widéh₁yetireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*widēō‘to see’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvideō‘to see’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinvidia‘envy, ill will’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEinvidiōsus‘envious, invidious, hostile’
- Englishearliest quotation 1753invidious
Earliest quotation: 1753, Samuel Johnson et al., Number LXXXI. TUESDAY, August 14, 1753.: “To think highly of ourselves in comparison with others,…”
The story
Borrowed from Latin invidiōsus, from invidia (‘envy, ill will’), from in- (‘upon’) + videō (‘to see’); the meaning developed from “look back at” to “look askance at” to “envy.”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *weyd- ‘to see’
story, guy, idea, advice, guide, witness, wise, historic, wisdom, wit, wizard, advise, historian, idol, witty, guise, steroid, tabloid, revue, visitation, improvise, druid, twit, envision, avis, hypothyroidism, witter, idyll, parathyroid, trapezoid, hyperthyroidism, weet, hyoid, colloid, thyroxine, visite, sigmoid, thyroiditis, 91 more
through Proto-Indo-European *widéh₁yeti
through Proto-Italic *widēō ‘to see’
provision, providence, revision, prudential, invisibility, provident, vada, evidential, 14 more
through Latin videō ‘to see’
video, review, visit, evidence, provide, interview, vision, visa, evident, invisible, visibility, vista, prudent, revise, jurisprudence, prudence, purview, voyeur, purveyor, vide, proviso, 17 more
through Latin invidia ‘envy, ill will’
through Latin invidiōsus ‘envious, invidious, hostile’
Today it means
adj Causing ill will, envy, or offense.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *weyd- / invidious