Dignified
/ˈdɪɡ.nɪ.faɪd/noun
Having or showing a composed, serious, and respectful manner.
Did you know?Dignified ultimately comes from Latin *dignus*, meaning “worthy,” the same root behind *condign* and *indignity*—so English preserved a whole moral universe of worth, rank, and shame in one family of words.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*dek̑-
“to be suitable, proper, or fitting”
Latin
Latin
dignus
“worthy, deserving, honorable”
Late Latin
Latin
dignificare
“to make worthy; to deem worthy; to ennoble”
Old French
Old French
dignifier
“to dignify, to confer honor or rank”
Middle English
English
dignifien
“to make worthy or honorable”
Modern English
English
dignified
“showing or marked by dignity”