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Etymology data from Wiktionary via Wiktextract (CC BY-SA 4.0). Chinese character data from the 說文解字, the Taiwan MOE 國語辭典簡編本 (CC BY-ND 3.0 TW) and HSK/TOCFL lists.

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English

information

/ˌɪn.fəˈmeɪ.ʃn̩/
Something that provides a definitive characterization or description of the nature and attributes of a specified entity.

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    Origin

    From Middle English enformacioun, informacioun, borrowed from Anglo-Norman informacioun, enformation, Old French information, from Latin īnfōrmātiō (“formation, conception; education”), from the participle stem of īnformāre (“to inform”). Equivalent to inform + -ation.

    From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

    Lineage

    • inheritedMiddle Englishenformacioun
      • derivedLate Latinīnfōrmātiō
        • partLatinīnfōrmō “to shape, form, train, instruct, educate”
          • partLatinin- “in, at, on; into”
            • inheritedProto-Italic*n̥-
              • inheritedProto-Indo-European*n̥- “un-”
            • inheritedProto-Italic*en-
              • derivedProto-Italic*en
            • derivedLatinferō “to bear, carry”
              • inheritedProto-Italic*ferō
            • derivedLatinin “in”
              • derivedOld Latinen
              • derivedProto-Indo-European*en
              • derivedLatinPlautus
            • derivedOld Frenchacte “perform, do”
              • derivedLatināctum
            • inheritedProto-Indo-European*énu
            • partLatintrāns “on the other side of”
              • borrowedGermanTransvestitismus
              • inheritedProto-Italic*trāns
              • derivedRomanianNistru “Dniester”
              • derivedLatinvertere “to turn, overturn”
            • partLatinagō “lead, drive, impel, push”
              • inheritedProto-Italic*agō “to drive, impel”
          • partLatinfōrmō “to form, make”
            • derivedLatinforma “shape; figure; form”
              • derivedAncient Greekμορφή “shape, form”
        • partLatin-tiō “-tion”
          • inheritedProto-Italic*-tiō
            • derivedProto-Indo-European*-tiHō
            • derivedProto-Indo-European*-tis
          • derivedProto-Italic*-tiō

    Meanings

    noun
    1. Something that provides a definitive characterization or description of the nature and attributes of a specified entity.
    2. Things that are or can be known about a given topic; communicable knowledge of something.
    3. The act of informing or imparting knowledge; notification.
    4. A statement of criminal activity brought before a judge or magistrate; in the UK, used to inform a magistrate of an offence and request a warrant; in the US, an accusation brought before a judge without a grand jury indictment.
    5. The act of informing against someone, passing on incriminating knowledge; accusation.
    6. The systematic imparting of knowledge; education, training.

    Sources

    • Wiktionary (via Wiktextract / kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0
    • Wiktionary: information