Etymograph

English

animosity

Animosity comes from Latin animositas ‘courage, spirit, vehemence’, from Proto-Italic *anamos ‘breath’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂enh₁-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂enh₁-1‘to breathe’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂enh₁mos1‘breath’reconstructednominal derivative of *h₂enh₁-
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*anamos1‘breath’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEanimus2‘courage, spirit, mind’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEanimosus2
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEanimositas2‘courage, spirit, vehemence’
  7. Frenchc. 1600–presentanimosité2
  8. Englishtodayanimosity2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin animus
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English animosity

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂enh₁-Wiktionary, Latin animus‘to breathe’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂enh₁mosWiktionary, Latin animus‘breath’reconstructednominal derivative of *h₂enh₁-
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*anamosWiktionary, Latin animus‘breath’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEanimusWiktionary, English animosity‘courage, spirit, mind’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEanimosusWiktionary, English animosity
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEanimositasWiktionary, English animosity‘courage, spirit, vehemence’
  7. Frenchc. 1600–presentanimositéWiktionary, English animosity
  8. EnglishtodayanimosityWiktionary, English animosity

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂enh₁- ‘to breathe’

and, asthma, inhale, exhalation, anima, prana, onde, 17 more

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂enh₁mos ‘breath’

anemone, 11 more

through Latin animus ‘courage, spirit, mind’

animal, anime, unanimously, unanimous, animate, animator, animus, 10 more

Today it means

noun Violent hatred leading to active opposition; active enmity; energetic dislike.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “animosity”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin animus. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂enh₁- / animosity

Shirt and support for this word