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Where does the word "subtle" come from? It comes from Latin subtilis, passing through Old French before entering English (1300s).
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Where does the word "subtle" come from? It comes from Latin subtilis, passing through Old French before entering English (1300s).
Subtle’s story begins in Latin: subtilis meant “finely woven.” 'sub-', under, plus 'tela', web, the root of 'textile'. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as sotil. The 'b' was restored from Latin but stays silent. It reached English by 1300s as subtle. 'subtlety' dates from the 1300s. Today, subtle means delicate and hard to detect.
- Stage 1 · Latin · ancient subtilis "finely woven", 'sub-', under, plus 'tela', web, the root of 'textile'.
- Stage 2 · Old French · medieval sotil "thin, clever", the 'b' was restored from Latin but stays silent.
- Stage 3 · English · 1300s subtle "fine; clever", 'subtlety' dates from the 1300s.