English
tenebrous
Tenebrous comes from Latin tenebrōsus ‘dark, gloomy’, from tenebrae ‘darkness, shadows’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *temH- ‘to be dark’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*temH-‘to be dark’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*témHos‘darkness’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*temH-(e)s-ro-reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*temazros‘dark’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtenebrae‘darkness, shadows’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEtenebrōsus‘dark, gloomy’
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400tenebrous
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tenebrose‘dark, gloomy’
- Englishearliest quotation 1847tenebrous
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*temH-‘to be dark’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*témHos‘darkness’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*temH-(e)s-ro-reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*temazros‘dark’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtenebrae‘darkness, shadows’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEtenebrōsus‘dark, gloomy’
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400tenebrous
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tenebrose‘dark, gloomy’
- Englishearliest quotation 1847tenebrous
Earliest quotation: 1847, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Boston: “Over their heads the towering and tenebrous boughs of…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *temH- ‘to be dark’
through Proto-Indo-European *témHos ‘darkness’
Today it means
adj Dark and gloomy; obscure.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *temH- / tenebrous