Etymology

unthinkable

U1N1T1H4I1N1K5A1B3L1E1

Today it means: That cannot be believed. Full definition →

English think ← Middle English thinken ← Old English þenċan
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*né
  2. Proto-Indo-European*n̥-
  3. Proto-Germanic*un-
  4. Proto-West Germanic*un-
  5. Old Englishun-
  6. Middle Englishun-
  7. Englishun-
  8. Proto-Indo-European*teng-
  9. Proto-Germanic*þankijaną
  10. Proto-West Germanic*þankijan
  11. Old Englishþenċan
  12. Middle Englishthinken
  13. Englishthink
  14. English todayunthinkable

From un- + think + -able.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.