genteel

The story

1. Latin · derived fromgentīlis“of or belonging to the same people or nation”
2. French · borrowed fromgentil“gentile”
3. English todaygenteel

Borrowed from French gentil (“gentile”), from Latin gentīlis (“of or belonging to the same people or nation”), from gēns (“clan; tribe; people, family”) + adjective suffix -īlis (“-ile”). Doublet of gentle, gentile, and jaunty. See also gens, gender, genus, and generation.

Words from the same roots