Etymograph

English

positive

Positive comes from Old French positif, from Latin positīvus, from the participle stem of pōnō ‘to place’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tḱey-1‘to settle’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tḱinéti1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sinō1‘to put in place’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pozinō1reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpōnō1‘to place’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpositīvus1‘positive, settled’
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400positif1
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1594positive1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English positive
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1594, Richard Hooker: “In laws, that which is natural bindeth universally; that…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tḱey-Wiktionary, English positive‘to settle’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tḱinétiWiktionary, English positivereconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sinōWiktionary, English positive‘to put in place’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pozinōWiktionary, English positivereconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpōnōWiktionary, English positive‘to place’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpositīvusWiktionary, English positive‘positive, settled’
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400positifWiktionary, English positive
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1594positiveWiktionary, English positive. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1594, Richard Hooker: “In laws, that which is natural bindeth universally; that…”

Word family

English words that share an ancestor with positive, grouped by the ancestor they share, most familiar first.

through Proto-Indo-European *tḱey- ‘to cultivate’

  • homeless ← *homles ← hāmlēas ← hām ← *haim
  • suppose ← supposen ← supposer
  • compound ← compounen ← componre ← componō
  • hamlet ← hamelet ← hamel ← ham ← *haim
  • impose ← imposen ← imposer
  • bohemian ← bohémien ← Bohême ← Bohême ← Boiohaemum
  • homely ← homly ← *hāmlīċ ← *haimalīk ← *haim
  • hame ← ham ← hām ← *haim ← *haimaz

through Proto-Italic *sinō ‘to put in place’

  • site ← situs ← sinō
  • situation ← situacioun ← situatio ← situare ← situs
  • posture ← postura ← positūrus ← pōnō ← *sinō
  • situate ← situātus ← situō ← situs ← sinō

208 more relatives in the full family tree

No ads, ever.

Become a founding member, $29 onceI have a code

Explore everything descended from *tḱey- →

No ads, ever. This is how the app stays alive.

Become a founding member, $29 onceWear this word, $32Support the app

Today it means

adj Included, present, characterized by affirmation.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “positive”. 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 *tḱey- / positive