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Origin and history of idem

idem(adv.)

"the same (as above)," used to avoid repetition in writing, Latin, literally "the same," from id "it, that one," from PIE pronominal stem *i- (see yon) + demonstrative suffix -dem.

Entries linking to idem

Middle English, from Old English geon "that or those," referring to objects at a distance, "that one (or those) over there," from Proto-Germanic *jaino-, source also of Old Frisian jen, Old Norse enn, Old High German ener, Middle Dutch ghens, German jener, Gothic jains "that, you."

This is reconstructed to be from PIE pronominal stem *i- (source also of Sanskrit ena-, third person pronoun, anena "that;" Latin idem "the same," id "it, that one;" Old Church Slavonic onu "he;" Lithuanian ans "he").

By late 14c. as "farther, more remote" in reference to another. As an adverb from late 15c., a shortening of yonder.

in algebra, quantity which multiplied by itself gives itself, 1870, from Latin idem "the same, identical with" (see idem) + potentem "powerful" (see potent).

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