English
some
Some comes from Old English sum ‘some, a certain one’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *sem- ‘one, whole’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sem-1‘one’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sumaz1‘some’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*sum1reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150sum1‘some’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500som1
- Englishearliest quotation 1611some1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English some
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “Euery counseller extolleth counsell; but there is some that…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sem-Wiktionary, English some‘one’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sumazWiktionary, English some‘some’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*sumWiktionary, English somereconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150sumWiktionary, English some‘some’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500somWiktionary, English some
- Englishearliest quotation 1611someWiktionary, English some. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “Euery counseller extolleth counsell; but there is some that…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *sem- ‘one, whole’
single, same, similar, seem, simple, simply, sam, soft, simulation, sincerely, singular, resemble, assemble, resemblance, simultaneous, simulate, sincerity, anomaly, semblance, assimilate, synapse, anomalous, insincere, hyphen, homology, homeopathic, simile, simulacrum, sempre, synchronise, homolog, 46 more
Today it means
pron A certain number (multiple but not all).
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “some”. 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- / some