curiosity (English)

Where does "curiosity" come from?

The English noun 'curiosity' descends through Middle English 'curiosite' and Anglo-Norman 'curiouseté', which trace back to the Latin accusative 'cūriōsitātem'[1]. This Latin term was formed by combining the adjective 'cūriōsus' with the suffix '-tās'[2].

Full etymology tree

• curiosity (English), 'Inquisitiveness; the tendency to ask and learn about things by asking questions, investigating, or exploring.'
  • borrowed curiosite (Middle English)
    • inherited curiouseté (Anglo-Norman)
      • inherited curiositatem (Latin), 'accusative singular of cūriōsitās'
        • derived curiositas (Latin), 'curiosity, inquisitiveness'
          • derived curiosus (Latin), 'Careful, diligent, thoughtful, devoted.'
          • suffix -tas (Latin), '-ty, -dom, -hood, -ness, -ship; Used to form feminine abstract nouns indicating a state of being.'

Ancestors

• curiositatem (Latin)

Descendants and derived words

• bi-curiosity (English)
• curio (English)
• curiosity killed the cat (English)
• public curiosity (English)
• uncuriosity (English)

Sources

1. curiosity (English) - Wiktionary
2. curiositas (Latin) - Wiktionary

Updated September 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris