English
profound
Profound comes from Old French profont ‘deep (of a liquid)’, and goes back to Latin profundus.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprofundus‘deep, profound’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400profont‘deep (of a liquid)’
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400profound
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500profound
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1604profound
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprofundus‘deep, profound’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400profont‘deep (of a liquid)’
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400profound
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500profound
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1604profound
Earliest quotation: c. 1603–1604, William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure: “How now! which of your hips has the most…”
A compound of prō ‘for’ + fundus ‘bottom’
Proto-Indo-European *pró ‘toward’
Proto-Italic *prō ‘for’
Latin prō ‘for’
Proto-Indo-European *dʰewbʰ- ‘to sink in’
Proto-Indo-European *bʰudʰmḗn ‘bottom’
Proto-Indo-European *bʰudʰnós
Proto-Indo-European *bʰundʰós
Proto-Italic *fundos
Latin fundus ‘bottom’
Linked words
through Latin profundus ‘deep, profound’
Today it means
adj Descending far below the surface; opening or reaching to great depth; deep.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin profundus / profound