Etymograph

English

importancy

Importancy comes from Latin importo ‘to bring, to import’, and goes back to portō ‘carry, bear’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEportō1‘carry, bear’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEimporto2‘to bring, to import’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEimportāre2present active infinitive of importo
  4. Medieval Latinc. 600–1500importantia3
  5. Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1604importancy3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin importo
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin importantia
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English importancy
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1603–1604, William Shakespeare, The Tragœdy of Othello: “[…]we conſider The importancy of Cypreſſe to the Turke:…”.

Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEportōWiktionary, Latin importo‘carry, bear’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEimportoWiktionary, Latin importantia‘to bring, to import’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEimportāreWiktionary, Latin importantiapresent active infinitive of importo
  4. Medieval Latinc. 600–1500importantiaWiktionary, English importancy
  5. Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1604importancyWiktionary, English importancy. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1603–1604, William Shakespeare, The Tragœdy of Othello: “[…]we conſider The importancy of Cypreſſe to the Turke:…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *per-

first, before, far, per, price, private, press, further, practice, fear, pre, appreciate, primary, prior, prime, prize, opportunity, practical, pregnant, afford, precious, praise, ford, privilege, parade, par, interpretation, forth, ferry, pirate, fare, pardon, prix, primitive, interpreter, pragmatic, privy, prism, proton, peril, 141 more

through Proto-Italic *portā ‘gate’

transport, porch, portal, rapporteur, portico, porta, 20 more

through Proto-Italic *portāō ‘to carry’

sport, export, porter, rapport, deport, comport, 16 more

through Latin portō ‘carry, bear’

support, report, port, 20 more

Today it means

noun Importance; significance.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “importancy”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin importo, Latin importantia. 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 portō / importancy

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