Etymologically
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inconvenient

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Pronunciation

  • /ˌɪn.kənˈviːni.ənt/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English inconvenient,[2][3] borrowed from Old French inconvenient,[4][5][6] from Latin inconveniēns (“unsuitable, not agreeing, dissimilar”),[7][8][6] formed from in- (“not”) and conveniēns (“suitable, fitting”),[7][8][5] the present participle of conveniō (“to come together; to agree, be suitable”), from com- and veniō (“to come”).[7][8] The OED dates the French word to the 13th century,[6] and the Anglo-Norman one is recorded from the early 13th century, both as an adjective, incongruous, and as a noun, an inconsistency or a nuisance.[9] Etymonline and Dictionary.com derive the English word directly from Latin.[7][10]

Earliest recorded meaning

As a noun, an incongruity or absurdity: about 1374, in Chaucer's translation of Boethius.[6][11] As an adjective, not agreeing, incongruous, absurd: 1398, in Trevisa's translation of Bartholomew.[6] Etymonline gives the late 14th-century senses "injurious, dangerous" and "absurd, illogical".[7][2]

Semantic evolution

The early meanings follow the Latin sense of things not fitting together: incongruous or absurd (1398–1674), unsuitable or out of place (c. 1460–1840), and morally unfitting or unseemly (before 1513–1694).[6][4] In the 15th century it was also said of medicines that did not suit, and of an accused person who was unlikely to be guilty.[2][7] The noun meant an absurdity, an improper act or a misfortune, until the 17th century.[6][2][4] The current sense, causing trouble or difficulty, appears in 1651, in Hobbes's Leviathan,[6][7][5] and Johnson (1755) defined the word as "incommodious; disadvantageous".[12] In Scots the noun inconvenient, an inconvenience, was still recorded in the 17th century.[13]

Timeline

  • c. 1374 – noun, an incongruity or absurdity (obsolete by 1532).[6]
  • 1398 – not agreeing; incongruous, absurd (obsolete by 1674).[6]
  • c. 1425 – noun, a troublesome circumstance, a misfortune (obsolete by 1650).[6]
  • c. 1460 – unsuitable, out of place (obsolete by 1840).[6]
  • before 1464 – noun, an improper act (obsolete by 1548).[6]
  • before 1513 – morally unbecoming, unseemly (obsolete by 1694).[6]
  • 1651 – causing trouble or difficulty; awkward.[6][7]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Causing trouble, difficulty or discomfort; awkward: The bus stop was in an inconvenient place for the elderly residents.[14][3][6]
  2. Not fitting in with someone's plans or needs; inopportune: Is this an inconvenient moment to talk?[3][14]
  3. (obsolete, 1398–1674) Incongruous, inconsistent or absurd.[6][3][4]
  4. (obsolete, c. 1460–1840) Unsuitable or out of place.[6][3][4]
  5. (obsolete, before 1513–1694) Morally unbecoming; improper.[6][3][4]

Noun

  1. (obsolete, c. 1374–1532) An incongruity or absurdity.[6][3][4]
  2. (obsolete, before 1464–1548) An improper act.[6][3][4]
  3. (obsolete) An inconvenience or mishap.[6][3][4][13]

Word family

  • inconveniently

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Kurath, Hans; Kuhn, Sherman M.; Lewis, Robert E., eds. (1952–2001), Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press; online edition ed. Frances McSparran et al. (2000–2018)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b c Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  8. ^ a b c Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  9. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
  10. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  11. ^ Benson, Larry D., Glossarial Concordance to Middle English (Chaucer, Gower), Johns Hopkins University, github.com/jhu-digital-manuscripts/gcme
  12. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  13. ^ a b Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)
  14. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins