English
extrinsic
Extrinsic comes from Latin extrinsecus ‘from without, without, on the outside’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- ‘to follow’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sekʷ-1‘to follow’root named by Wiktionary
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEextrinsecus1‘from without, without, on the outside’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentextrinsèque1
- Englishearliest quotation 2015extrinsic1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English extrinsic
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2015, June Quek et al.: “1 Experimental set up for strength testing of the…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sekʷ-Wiktionary, English extrinsic‘to follow’root named by Wiktionary
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEextrinsecusWiktionary, English extrinsic‘from without, without, on the outside’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentextrinsèqueWiktionary, English extrinsic
- Englishearliest quotation 2015extrinsicWiktionary, English extrinsic. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2015, June Quek et al.: “1 Experimental set up for strength testing of the…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- ‘to follow’
see, say, second, social, saw, society, executive, suit, associate, subsequent, sequence, sight, pursue, sue, prosecution, consecutive, sequel, saga, consequently, execute, persecution, sect, sequential, consequent, dissociation, executor, sequestration, persecute, ensue, segue, sequester, intrinsic, dissociate, seg, sequitur, 34 more
Today it means
adj External; separable from the thing itself; inessential.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “extrinsic”. 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 *sekʷ- / extrinsic