*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of undue

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Germanic *un- Proto-West Germanic *un- Old English un- Middle English un- English un- English due English undue From un- + due.

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INDEPENDENT SOURCE LIBRARY

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In this entry · 1 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.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
adj

Excessive; going beyond that what is natural or sufficient. · Which ought not to be done; illegal; unjustified. · Not owing or payable.

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

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Germanic *un- Proto-West Germanic *un- Old English un- Middle English un- English un- English due English undue From un- + due.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "un-<id:negative>",
        "4": "due",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *né\nProto-Indo-European *n̥-\nProto-Germanic *un-\nProto-West Germanic *un-\nOld English un-\nMiddle English un-\nEnglish un-\nEnglish due\nEnglish undue\n[Appendix:Glossary#inherited|Inherited]] from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*un-\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*un-\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"un-\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"un-\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"un-\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }, { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"due\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"en\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"undue\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"undue\">\nFrom un- + due."
    },
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    }
  ],
  "links": [
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      "*né",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/né#Proto-Indo-European:_not"
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      "*n̥-",
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    ],
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      "*un-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/un-#Proto-Germanic:_not"
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      "*un-",
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      "un-",
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      "due",
      "due#English"
    ]
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  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "adj",
      "glosses": [
        "Excessive; going beyond that what is natural or sufficient.",
        "Which ought not to be done; illegal; unjustified.",
        "Not owing or payable."
      ],
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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 undue →

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-dW5kdWU