English
perverse
Perverse comes from Latin perversum ‘thoroughly turned’, from vertō ‘to turn’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wert-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wert-‘to turn, to rotate, spin’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*wertō‘to turn’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvertōas vertere‘to turn’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEperversum‘thoroughly turned’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400pervers
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500perverse
- Englishearliest quotation 1545perverse
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wert-‘to turn, to rotate, spin’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*wertō‘to turn’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvertōas vertere‘to turn’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEperversum‘thoroughly turned’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400pervers
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500perverse
- Englishearliest quotation 1545perverse
Earliest quotation: 1545, John Bale: “This rule hath been always for the commodity of…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *wert- ‘to turn, to rotate, spin’
word, worth, weird, ridiculous, universe, ridicule, derision, invert, deride, derisive, wurst, extraversion, 59 more
through Proto-Italic *wertō ‘to turn’
diversion, inversion, aversion, transverse, vertebra, reversion, evert, vertiginous, 42 more
through Latin vertō ‘to turn’
university, version, divorce, conversation, diversity, vertical, versus, vortex, diverse, advertisement, convertible, versatile, adverse, advert, divert, revert, adversity, diversification, vertex, vertigo, avert, vertebrate, inverse, introvert, subvert, vert, averse, verso, 49 more
Today it means
adj Turned aside while against something, splitting off from a thing.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *wert- / perverse