morbidity

The story

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*mer-“to rub, pound, wear away”
2. Latin · derived frommorbidus“diseased”
3. English todaymorbidity

Recorded since 1721; from morbid + -ity, from Latin morbidus (“diseased”), from morbus (“disease”), from the root of morī (“to die”) or from Proto-Indo-European *mer- (“to rub, pound, wear away”).

Words from the same roots