some (English)
Where does "some" come from?
The word "some" traces its roots back to the Proto-Indo-European root *sem-, meaning "one" or "whole." Over millennia, it evolved through Proto-Germanic and Old English as "sum," originally referring to a certain individual or unit. Eventually, this term softened into the modern English "some," broadening from its specific, identifier-based origins to describe indefinite amounts or partial extents.
Full etymology tree
- some (English), 'Of a measurement: approximately, roughly.'
- inherited sum (Middle English)
- inherited sum (Old English), 'some'
- inherited *sum (Proto-West Germanic), 'some'
- inherited *sumaz (Proto-Germanic), 'some (one), a certain (one)'
- inherited *sm̥-h₁-o- (Proto-Indo-European)
- inherited *sem- (Proto-Indo-European), 'together, one'
- inherited *sm̥-h₁-o- (Proto-Indo-European)
- inherited *sumaz (Proto-Germanic), 'some (one), a certain (one)'
- inherited *sum (Proto-West Germanic), 'some'
- inherited sum (Old English), 'some'
- inherited sum (Middle English)
Direct ancestors
- sem- (Proto-Indo-European)
- som (Middle English)
- sum (Old English)
- sum (Proto-West Germanic)
- sumaz (Proto-Germanic)
- sem- (Proto-Indo-European)
- som (Dutch)
- sommige (Dutch)
Updated June 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris