Etymograph

English

asinine

Asinine comes from Latin asinīnus ‘of a donkey or ass’, and goes back to asinus.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEasinus1‘ass, donkey’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEasinīnus2‘of a donkey or ass’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1881asinine2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin asininus
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English asinine
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1881, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, The Ingenious Knight: Don Quixote de la Mancha: “Don Quixote had put himself but a little way…”.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEasinusWiktionary, Latin asininus‘ass, donkey’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEasinīnusWiktionary, English asinine‘of a donkey or ass’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1881asinineWiktionary, English asinine. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1881, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, The Ingenious Knight: Don Quixote de la Mancha: “Don Quixote had put himself but a little way…”

Linked words

through Latin asinus ‘ass, donkey’

ass, easel, 1 more

Today it means

adj Very foolish; failing to exercise intelligence or judgement or rationality.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “asinine”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin asininus. 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 / Latin asinus / asinine

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