Etymology

ennui

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Today it means: A gripping listlessness or melancholia caused by boredom; depression. Full definition →

French ennui ← Old French enui ← Late Latin inodiāre
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₁én
  2. Proto-Italic*en
  3. Proto-Italic*en-
  4. Latinin-
  5. Proto-Indo-European*h₃ed-
  6. Proto-Italic*odjom
  7. Latinodium
  8. Late Latininodiāre
  9. Old Frenchenuier?
  10. Old Frenchenui
  11. Frenchennui
  12. English todayennui

Unadapted borrowing from French ennui, from Old French enui (“annoyance”), from enuier (modern French ennuyer), from Late Latin inodiō, from Latin in odiō (“hated”). Doublet of annoy.

Words from the same roots

Old Frenchenui all →

annoy

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.