Etymograph

English

truthless

Truthless comes from Middle English trewðeleas.

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500trewðeleas1
  2. Englishtodaytruthless1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English truthless

Lineage

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500trewðeleasWiktionary, English truthless
  2. EnglishtodaytruthlessWiktionary, English truthless

Formed from truth + -less

Proto-Germanic *triwwiþō ‘truth, promise’

Proto-West Germanic *triuwiþu

Old English trēowþ ‘truth, good faith’

Middle English treuthe ‘loyalty, truth’

English truth

Every English word from Middle English trewðeleas

Today it means

adj Lacking truth, untruthful.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “truthless”. 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 / Middle English trewðeleas / truthless

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