English
transfinite
Transfinite comes from German transfinit, from finit ‘finite’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeygʷ- ‘to stick, set up’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeygʷ-1‘to stick, set up’uncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CE*fignis1uncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfīnis2‘boundary, limit’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfīniō3‘finish’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfīnītus4‘finished, terminated, having been finished or terminated’
- Germanc. 1650–presentfinit5‘finite’
- Germanc. 1650–presenttransfinit6
- Englishearliest quotation 1973transfinite6
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin finis
- 2 Wiktionary, Latin finio
- 3 Wiktionary, Latin finitus
- 4 Wiktionary, German finit
- 5 Wiktionary, German transfinit
- 6 Wiktionary, English transfinite
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1973, Oliver Sacks: “An interesting and perhaps essential formal model of this…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeygʷ-Wiktionary, Latin finis‘to stick, set up’uncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CE*fignisWiktionary, Latin finisuncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfīnisWiktionary, Latin finio‘boundary, limit’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfīniōWiktionary, Latin finitus‘finish’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfīnītusWiktionary, German finit‘finished, terminated, having been finished or terminated’
- Germanc. 1650–presentfinitWiktionary, German transfinit‘finite’
- Germanc. 1650–presenttransfinitWiktionary, English transfinite
- Englishearliest quotation 1973transfiniteWiktionary, English transfinite. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1973, Oliver Sacks: “An interesting and perhaps essential formal model of this…”
The story
From German transfinit, coined by Georg Cantor, equivalent to trans- + finite.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *dʰeygʷ- ‘to stick, set up’
fix, dig, ditch, dyke, dike, crucify, 19 more
through Latin *fignis
through Latin fīnis ‘boundary, limit’
final, finish, infinite, fin, infinity, finesse, confine, financier, affine, fino, finis, finial, 12 more
through Latin fīniō ‘finish’
through Latin fīnītus ‘finished, terminated, having been finished or…’
Today it means
adj Beyond finite.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “transfinite”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin finis, Latin finio, Latin finitus, German finit, German transfinit. 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 *dʰeygʷ- / transfinite