"I" Word Origins

indigene

Origin

From Middle French indigène, from Latin indigena.

indigenous

Late Latin

From Late Latin indigenus, "native, born in a country," from an old root meaning "born within."

indigent

Latin

From Old French indigent, from Latin indigens, "needing," from indigere ("to need, lack").

indigestion

Late Latin

From Old French indigestion, from Late Latin indigestio, from in- ("not") + digestion.

indignant

Latin

From Latin indignans, present participle of indignari, "to consider unworthy, be angered," from in- ("not") + dignus ("worthy").

indignation

Latin

From Old French indignation, from Latin indignatio, from indignari, "to be angered at something unworthy."

indignity

Latin

From Latin indignitas, from indignus, "unworthy," from in- ("not") + dignus ("worthy").

indigo

Spanish

From Spanish índigo, ultimately from Greek indikon, "Indian dye," reflecting the plant's origin in India.

indio

Spanish

From Spanish indio, "Indian," from the same historical confusion that gave rise to English "Indian" for the Americas.

Indira

Sanskrit

Borrowed from Sanskrit इन्दिरा (indirā).

indirect

Late Latin

From Late Latin indirectus, "not straight," from in- ("not") + directus ("direct").

indirectly

Origin

From indirect plus the adverb-forming suffix -ly.

indiscreet

Origin

Formed from in- (\"not\") plus discreet.

indiscretion

Late Latin

From Old French, ultimately from Late Latin indiscretio.

indiscriminate

Origin · 1598

First recorded in 1598, built from in- (\"not\") plus discriminate.

indiscriminately

Origin

From indiscriminate plus the adverb suffix -ly.

indispensable

Medieval Latin

From Middle French indispensable, from Medieval Latin indispensabilis — literally "not able to be dispensed with."

indispose

Origin

From Middle French indisposer, equivalent to in- + dispose.

indisposed

Origin

Formed from in- (\"not\") plus disposed.

indisposition

Origin

From Middle English indisposicioun, from Middle French indisposicion.

indisputable

Latin

Built from in- (\"not\") plus disputable, ultimately from Latin disputare (\"to argue, debate\").

indistinct

Latin

From Middle French indistinct, from Latin indistinctus, built from in- (\"not\") plus distinct.

indistinctly

Origin

From indistinct plus -ly.

indistinguishable

Origin

Formed from in- (\"not\") plus distinguishable.

indite

Origin

Originally a variant of indict; from Middle English enditen, endyten, from Old French enditer, from Late Latin indictāre, from in- + dictare (“to declare”). Doublet of indict.

indited

Latin

From Latin indictare, meaning to declare or proclaim, which reached English through Old French enditer. The same root later produced the legal word indict.

indium

Origin

Coined as a New Latin term from German Indigo (“indigo”), based on the color of its spectral lines.

individual

Medieval Latin

From Medieval Latin individualis, from Latin individuum ("an indivisible thing"), from in- ("not") plus dividuus ("divisible").

individualism

French

Borrowed from French individualisme, built from individual plus -ism.

individualistic

Origin

From individualist + -ic or individual + -istic.

individuality

Origin

From individual plus the noun suffix -ity.

individually

Origin

From individual plus -ly.

indivisible

Late Latin

From Middle French indivisible, from Late Latin indivisibilis, built from in- (\"not\") plus divisible.

Indochina

French · 1800

Blended from Indo- and China, modeled on the French Indochine; the name was first suggested in the early 1800s by the Scottish orientalist John Leyden.

indoctrinate

Origin

From in- + doctrine + -ate (verb-forming suffix). Compare French endoctriner.

indoctrination

Origin · 1646

First recorded in 1646, from indoctrinate plus -ion.

indolence

Origin

Borrowed from Middle French indolence, or from its etymon Latin indolentia (“freedom from pain; insensibility”), from in- (prefix meaning ‘not’) + dolēns (“hurting, suffering; grieving, lamenting”) + -ia (suffix forming feminine abstract nouns). Dolēns is the present participle of doleō (“to hurt, suffer; to be sorry, deplore, grieve for, lament”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *delh₁- (“to divide, split”).

indolent

Latin

From Latin indolentia 'freedom from pain', from in- 'not' plus dolere 'to feel pain'; the sense of laziness developed from the idea of taking no trouble.

indomitable

Late Latin

From Late Latin indomitabilis, from in- (\"not\") plus a form of domare (\"to tame\").

Indonesia

Greek · 1850

Coined around 1850 by combining Greek Indos ("Indian") and nesos ("island") — literally "Indian islands."

Indonesian

Origin

From Indonesia plus the suffix -an.

indoor

Origin · 1711

From "(with)in" plus "door," first recorded in 1711.

indoors

Origin

From "in" plus "doors," originally the two-word phrase "within doors."

indorse

Origin

Alteration influenced by Medieval Latin indorsare of Middle English endosse, from Old French endosser (“to put on back”), from Latin dossum, alternative form of dorsum (“back”), from which also dorsal (“of the back”). That is, the ‘r’ was dropped in Latin dossum, which developed into Old French and then Middle English endosse, and then the ‘r’ was re-introduced into English via the Medieval Latin indorsare, which had retained the ‘r’; at the same time the ‘e’ (French) was changed to ‘i’ (Latin) (in-, rather than en-). Note that the alternative form endorse is now more common, retaining the restored ‘r’ but reverting to the initial ‘e’, rather than the Latinate ‘i’.

Indra

Sanskrit

A transliteration of the Sanskrit word Indra.

induce

Latin

From Middle English enducen, borrowed from Latin inducere ("lead in, bring in"), from in- plus ducere ("to lead").

induct

Origin

Originated 1350–1400 from Middle English induct, borrowed from Latin inductus, perfect passive participle of indūcō, equivalent to induce + -tus (past participle suffix).

inductee

Origin

From induct + -ee.