entry
infinite
/ˈɪnfɪnɪt/Without limit, end, or measurable boundary
From Latin in- (not) + Latin fīnis (end).
from Latin infinitus "unbounded, unlimited, countless, numberless,"
from Old French infinit "endless, boundless" and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French infinit "endless, boundless" and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French infinit "endless, boundless" and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French infinit "endless, boundless" and directly
+1 more sourceWord Ancestry
from Latin infinitus "unbounded, unlimited, countless, numberless,"
from Old French infinit "endless, boundless" and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French infinit "endless, boundless" and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French infinit "endless, boundless" and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French infinit "endless, boundless" and directly
+1 more sourcePicture a Roman clerk drawing a line on a wax tablet: that line was a finis, a boundary or end. Add in-, meaning “not,” and Latin īnfīnītus becomes “not bounded”—a wonderfully literal refusal to stop. The word reached English through Old French infinit and appeared by the late 14th century, just as medieval thinkers were arguing about whether the universe itself could have an edge. Its family is full of familiar surprises: finite is the bounded cousin, definitive is something that sets a boundary, and finish is what happens when you reach one. When you say infinite, you are imagining a line whose Roman boundary marker has vanished—and there is simply no last step to take.
The Story
Picture a Roman clerk drawing a line on a wax tablet: that line was a finis, a boundary or end. Add in-, meaning “not,” and Latin īnfīnītus becomes “not bounded”—a wonderfully literal refusal to stop. The word reached English through Old French infinit and appeared by the late 14th century, just as medieval thinkers were arguing about whether the universe itself could have an edge. Its family is full of familiar surprises: finite is the bounded cousin, definitive is something that sets a boundary, and finish is what happens when you reach one. When you say infinite, you are imagining a line whose Roman boundary marker has vanished—and there is simply no last step to take.
Kin & Kindred
From 'in-'·not; without; opposite of
Derived Terms
English words from this root
From 'fīnis'·end; boundary; limit
Derived Terms
English words from this root