*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of I's

From I + -'s (suffix forming plurals).

3 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 3 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
noun

plural of I (letter of the alphabet or the ego)

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From I + -'s (suffix forming plurals).

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "I",
        "4": "-'s<pos:suffix forming plurals>",
        "id": "plural",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "From I + -'s (suffix forming plurals)."
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "I",
        "4": "-'s<pos:suffix forming plurals>",
        "id": "plural",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *éǵh₂\nProto-Indo-European *e-\nProto-Indo-European *-m\n?\nProto-Indo-European *-óm\nProto-Indo-European *eǵh₂óm\nProto-Germanic *eka\nProto-Germanic *ek\nProto-West Germanic *ik\nOld English iċ\nMiddle English ik, ich, ī\nEnglish I\nEnglish -'s\nEnglish I's\nFrom I + -'s (suffix forming plurals)."
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "I",
      "I#English"
    ],
    [
      "-'s",
      "-'s#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "plural of I (letter of the alphabet or the ego)"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "form-of",
        "plural"
      ],
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}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
contraction

Contraction of I + is. · Contraction of I + has. · Contraction of I + was.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *éǵh₂ Proto-Indo-European *e- Proto-Indo-European *-m ? Proto-Indo-European *-óm Proto-Indo-European *eǵh₂óm Proto-Germanic *eka Proto-Germanic *ek Proto-West Germanic *ik Old English iċ Middle English ik, ich, ī English I English 's English I's From I + 's (contraction of is, has, and was).

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": ",",
      "args": {},
      "expansion": ","
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "I",
        "4": "'s<pos:contraction of is, has, and was>",
        "id": "contraction",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *éǵh₂\nProto-Indo-European *e-\nProto-Indo-European *-m\n?\nProto-Indo-European *-óm\nProto-Indo-European *eǵh₂óm\nProto-Germanic *eka\nProto-Germanic *ek\nProto-West Germanic *ik\nOld English iċ\nMiddle English ik, ich, ī\nEnglish I\nEnglish 's\nEnglish I's\n[Appendix:Glossary#inherited|Inherited]] from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*eka\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*ek\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*ik\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"iċ\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"I\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"I\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }, { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"'s\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"en\", \"pos\" : \"contraction of is, has<span class=\\\"serial-comma\\\">,<\\/span> and was\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"I's\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"contraction\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"I's\" id=\"English:_contraction\">\nFrom I + 's (contraction of is, has, and was)."
    },
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        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "I",
        "4": "[\"'s<pos:contraction of is, has\", <TEMPLATE([',']){} >, \" and was>\"]",
        "id": "contraction",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *éǵh₂\nProto-Indo-European *e-\nProto-Indo-European *-m\n?\nProto-Indo-European *-óm\nProto-Indo-European *eǵh₂óm\nProto-Germanic *eka\nProto-Germanic *ek\nProto-West Germanic *ik\nOld English iċ\nMiddle English ik, ich, ī\nEnglish I\nEnglish 's\nEnglish I's\nFrom I + 's (contraction of is, has, and was)."
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*éǵh₂",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/éǵh₂"
    ],
    [
      "*e-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/ís"
    ],
    [
      "*-m",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-m"
    ],
    [
      "*-óm",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-óm"
    ],
    [
      "*eǵh₂óm",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/eǵh₂óm"
    ],
    [
      "*eka",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/eka"
    ],
    [
      "*ek",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/ek"
    ],
    [
      "*ik",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/ik"
    ],
    [
      "iċ",
      "ic#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "ik, ich, ī",
      "I#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "I",
      "I#English"
    ],
    [
      "'s",
      "'s#English"
    ],
    [
      "I",
      "I#English"
    ],
    [
      "'s",
      "'s#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "contraction",
      "glosses": [
        "Contraction of I + is.",
        "Contraction of I + has.",
        "Contraction of I + was."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "abbreviation",
        "alt-of",
        "contraction",
        "dialectal",
        "nonstandard"
      ],
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 1033253
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
det

Synonym of my.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *éǵh₂ Proto-Indo-European *e- Proto-Indo-European *-m ? Proto-Indo-European *-óm Proto-Indo-European *eǵh₂óm Proto-Germanic *eka Proto-Germanic *ek Proto-West Germanic *ik Old English iċ Middle English ik, ich, ī English I English -'s English I's From I + -'s (possessive marker).

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "I",
        "4": "-'s<pos:possessive marker>",
        "id": "my",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *éǵh₂\nProto-Indo-European *e-\nProto-Indo-European *-m\n?\nProto-Indo-European *-óm\nProto-Indo-European *eǵh₂óm\nProto-Germanic *eka\nProto-Germanic *ek\nProto-West Germanic *ik\nOld English iċ\nMiddle English ik, ich, ī\nEnglish I\nEnglish -'s\nEnglish I's\n[Appendix:Glossary#inherited|Inherited]] from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*eka\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*ek\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*ik\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"iċ\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"I\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"I\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }, { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"-'s\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"en\", \"pos\" : \"possessive marker\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"I's\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"my\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"I's\" id=\"English:_my\">\nFrom I + -'s (possessive marker)."
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "I",
        "4": "-'s<pos:possessive marker>",
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        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *éǵh₂\nProto-Indo-European *e-\nProto-Indo-European *-m\n?\nProto-Indo-European *-óm\nProto-Indo-European *eǵh₂óm\nProto-Germanic *eka\nProto-Germanic *ek\nProto-West Germanic *ik\nOld English iċ\nMiddle English ik, ich, ī\nEnglish I\nEnglish -'s\nEnglish I's\nFrom I + -'s (possessive marker)."
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*éǵh₂",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/éǵh₂"
    ],
    [
      "*e-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/ís"
    ],
    [
      "*-m",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-m"
    ],
    [
      "*-óm",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-óm"
    ],
    [
      "*eǵh₂óm",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/eǵh₂óm"
    ],
    [
      "*eka",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/eka"
    ],
    [
      "*ek",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/ek"
    ],
    [
      "*ik",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/ik"
    ],
    [
      "iċ",
      "ic#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "ik, ich, ī",
      "I#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "I",
      "I#English"
    ],
    [
      "-'s",
      "-'s#English"
    ],
    [
      "I",
      "I#English"
    ],
    [
      "-'s",
      "-'s#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "det",
      "glosses": [
        "Synonym of my."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "nonstandard"
      ],
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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for I's →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-SSdz