Etymograph

English

sempiternal

Sempiternal comes from Latin sempiternus ‘everlasting, perpetual, eternal, continual’, from semper ‘always’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sem- ‘one’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sem-1‘one’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sḗm2‘one’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsemper3‘always’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsempiternus3‘everlasting, perpetual, eternal, continual’
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400sempiternel3
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1841sempiternal3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *sḗm
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin semper
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English sempiternal
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1841, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essay X. Circles.: “The one thing which we seek with insatiable desire…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sem-Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *sḗm‘one’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sḗmWiktionary, Latin semper‘one’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsemperWiktionary, English sempiternal‘always’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsempiternusWiktionary, English sempiternal‘everlasting, perpetual, eternal, continual’
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400sempiternelWiktionary, English sempiternal
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1841sempiternalWiktionary, English sempiternal. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1841, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essay X. Circles.: “The one thing which we seek with insatiable desire…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *sem- ‘one’

some, same, single, similar, simple, simply, seem, soft, sam, simulation, sincerely, singular, simultaneous, resemble, assemble, resemblance, anomaly, simulate, sincerity, assimilate, semblance, homeopathic, anomalous, homology, insincere, synapse, simile, simulacrum, homolog, synchronise, 45 more

through Proto-Indo-European *sḗm ‘one’

hyphen, 4 more

through Latin semper ‘always’

sempre

Today it means

adj Everlasting, eternal.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “sempiternal”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Indo-European *sḗm, Latin semper. 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 *sem- / sempiternal

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