Etymograph

English

nocency

Nocency comes from Latin nocentia ‘guilt, transgression’, from noceō ‘harm’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *neḱ- ‘perish, disappear’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*neḱ-1‘perish, disappear’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*noḱ-éye-ti1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*nokeō1‘to harm, hurt, injure’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnoceō2‘harm’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnocēns3‘harmful, guilty’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnocentia3‘guilt, transgression’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1656nocency3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin noceo
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin nocens
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English nocency
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1656, William Sanderson, France: “Somhampton was beſt truſted in that, for he had…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*neḱ-Wiktionary, Latin noceo‘perish, disappear’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*noḱ-éye-tiWiktionary, Latin noceoreconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*nokeōWiktionary, Latin noceo‘to harm, hurt, injure’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnoceōWiktionary, Latin nocens‘harm’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnocēnsWiktionary, English nocency‘harmful, guilty’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEnocentiaWiktionary, English nocency‘guilt, transgression’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1656nocencyWiktionary, English nocency. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1656, William Sanderson, France: “Somhampton was beſt truſted in that, for he had…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *neḱ- ‘perish, disappear’

nectar, obnoxious, necropolis, internecine, 17 more

through Latin noceō ‘harm’

innocent, nuisance, innocuous, noxious, 12 more

through Latin nocēns ‘harmful, guilty’

innocence, 3 more

Today it means

noun Guilt; transgression.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “nocency”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin noceo, Latin nocens. 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 *neḱ- / nocency

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