Etymograph

English

resemble

Resemble comes from Anglo-Norman resembler, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *sem- ‘one, whole’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sem-‘one, whole’root as named · steps between not traced
  2. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400resembler
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500resemblen
  4. Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588resemble

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sem-‘one, whole’root as named · steps between not traced
  2. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400resembler
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500resemblen
  4. Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588resemble

Earliest quotation: c. 1587–1588, Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […]: “And ſince we all haue ſuckt one wholſome aire,…”

Equivalent to re- + semble

Proto-Italic *wre- ‘again’

English re-

Proto-Indo-European *sem- ‘together, one’

…

Latin similis ‘similar’

Late Latin similāre ‘a fax machine’

Old French sembler ‘to resemble’

Middle English semblen

English semble

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *sem- ‘one, whole’

some, same, similar, single, simply, simple, soft, sam, seem, simulation, singular, sincerely, simultaneous, anomaly, simulate, sincerity, assimilate, anomalous, homeopathic, assemble, homology, hyphen, synapse, insincere, semblance, simile, simulacrum, homolog, synchronise, sempre, 47 more

Today it means

verb To be like or similar to (something); to represent as similar.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *sem- / resemble

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