English
nude
Nude comes from Latin nūdus ‘naked, bare’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *negʷ-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*negʷ-‘to be naked’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*nogʷós‘naked’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*nogʷedʰósreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*nogʷedos‘naked’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnūdus‘naked, bare’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500nud
- Englishearliest quotation 1825nude
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*negʷ-‘to be naked’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*nogʷós‘naked’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*nogʷedʰósreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*nogʷedos‘naked’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnūdus‘naked, bare’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500nud
- Englishearliest quotation 1825nude
Earliest quotation: 1825, Sir William Hay Macnaghten: “A void sale is that which can never take…”
The story
Entered English 1493 as a legal term, meaning "unsupported, not formally attested," from Middle English nud, from Latin nūdus (‘naked, bare’).
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *negʷ- ‘to be naked’
night, naked, negro, gymnastics, noir, nigger, nocturnal, actin, nox, nocturne, denigrate, nigella, 51 more
through Proto-Indo-European *nogʷós ‘naked’
gymnasium, gymnast, naga, 12 more
through Latin nūdus ‘naked, bare’
Today it means
adj Without clothing or other covering of the skin; without clothing on the genitals or female nipples.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *negʷ- / nude