English
sinful
Sinful comes from Old English synful ‘sinful, guilty, wicked, corrupt’, from synn ‘misdeed, fault, crime, wrong’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁es- ‘to be’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁es-‘to be’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sunjō‘truth, reality’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*sunnju‘actuality, distress, concern’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150synn‘misdeed, fault, crime, wrong’
- Old English, derivedc. 450–1150synful‘sinful, guilty, wicked, corrupt’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form
- Englishearliest quotation 2018sinful
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁es-‘to be’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sunjō‘truth, reality’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*sunnju‘actuality, distress, concern’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150synn‘misdeed, fault, crime, wrong’
- Old English, derivedc. 450–1150synful‘sinful, guilty, wicked, corrupt’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form
- Englishearliest quotation 2018sinful
Earliest quotation: 2018, Rachel Cohn, David Levithan: “I take a whiff of the most sincerely sinful…”
Formed from sin + -ful
Proto-Indo-European *h₁es- ‘to be’
…
Proto-Germanic *sunjō ‘truth, excuse’
Proto-West Germanic *sunnju
Old English synn ‘sin’
Middle English synne
English sin
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₁es- ‘to be’
is, am, potential, interest, soothe, swastika, sooth, asana, quintessence, 11 more
through Old English synn ‘misdeed, fault, crime, wrong’
Today it means
adj Having sinned; guilty of sin.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₁es- / sinful