obtuse

The story

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*(s)tewd-
2. Latin · derived fromobtūsus“blunt, dull; obtuse”
3. Middle English · inherited fromobtuse
4. English todayobtuse

From Middle English obtuse, from Latin obtūsus (“blunt, dull; obtuse”), past participle of obtundere, from obtundō (“to batter, beat, strike; to blunt, dull”), from ob- (“against”) (see ob-) + tundō (“to beat, strike; to bruise, crush, pound”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tewd-, from *(s)tew- (“to hit; to push”)). More at obtund.

Words from the same roots