English
premonition
Premonition comes from Ecclesiastical Latin praemonitiōnem ‘a forewarning’, from Latin prae ‘before’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *per-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-‘before’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*préh₂i‘before, in front’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*prai‘before’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprae‘before’next step skipped: Latin praemoneō
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEpraemonitus‘forewarned’
- Ecclesiastical Latinc. 200–1500praemonitiōnem‘a forewarning’
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400premunition
- Englishearliest quotation 1920premonition
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-‘before’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*préh₂i‘before, in front’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*prai‘before’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprae‘before’next step skipped: Latin praemoneō
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEpraemonitus‘forewarned’
- Ecclesiastical Latinc. 200–1500praemonitiōnem‘a forewarning’
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400premunition
- Englishearliest quotation 1920premonition
Earliest quotation: 1920, Agatha Christie, The Mysterious Affair at Styles: “The sinister face of Dr. Bauerstein recurred to me…”
The story
First use appears c. 1533.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘before’
first, before, support, far, per, further, report, price, private, fear, press, practice, port, primary, prime, afford, ford, prior, appreciate, prize, forth, pregnant, practical, parade, par, praise, privilege, ferry, pirate, precious, porch, fare, interpretation, pardon, prix, peril, primitive, afar, privy, petra, 157 more
through Proto-Italic *prai ‘before’
prestigious, preface, prefix, precede, preeminent, prescient, impregnate, 8 more
through Latin prae ‘before’
Today it means
noun A clairvoyant or clairaudient experience, such as a dream, which resonates with some event in the future.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *per- / premonition