Etymograph

English

dangerosity

Dangerosity comes from French dangerosité ‘dangerousness’, from Latin dominium ‘ownership’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dem- ‘to build (up)’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dem-1‘to build (up)’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dṓm1‘home’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*domanos1‘master’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdominus1‘master, lord’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdominium2‘ownership’
  6. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*dom(i)niarium2reconstructed
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400dangier3‘danger’
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400dangereus3
  9. Frenchc. 1600–presentdangereux4‘dangerous’
  10. Frenchc. 1600–presentdangerosité5‘dangerousness’
  11. Englishearliest quotation 1882dangerosity5

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin dominium
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Old French dangier
  3. 3 Wiktionary, French dangereux
  4. 4 Wiktionary, French dangerosité
  5. 5 Wiktionary, English dangerosity
  6. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1882, Our Union Depot. A Stranger’s Opinion of the Ancient and Ric: “Naturally inquisitive, I ran the gauntlet of the place…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dem-Wiktionary, Latin dominium‘to build (up)’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dṓmWiktionary, Latin dominium‘home’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*domanosWiktionary, Latin dominium‘master’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdominusWiktionary, Latin dominium‘master, lord’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdominiumWiktionary, Old French dangier‘ownership’
  6. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*dom(i)niariumWiktionary, Old French dangierreconstructed
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400dangierWiktionary, French dangereux‘danger’
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400dangereusWiktionary, French dangereux
  9. Frenchc. 1600–presentdangereuxWiktionary, French dangerosité‘dangerous’
  10. Frenchc. 1600–presentdangerositéWiktionary, English dangerosity‘dangerousness’
  11. Englishearliest quotation 1882dangerosityWiktionary, English dangerosity. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1882, Our Union Depot. A Stranger’s Opinion of the Ancient and Ric: “Naturally inquisitive, I ran the gauntlet of the place…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *dem- ‘to build (up)’

timber, despotic, domesticate, toft, teem, 19 more

through Proto-Indo-European *dṓm ‘home’

domestic, domicile, despot, domus, 20 more

through Latin dominus ‘master, lord’

do, don, dan, dominate, donna, dame, domination, dungeon, domino, damsel, dominatrix, dominus, domaine, domine, 7 more

through Latin dominium ‘ownership’

domain, dominion, 4 more

Today it means

noun The quality of being dangerous.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “dangerosity”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin dominium, Old French dangier, French dangereux, French dangerosité. 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 *dem- / dangerosity

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