Notorious
/noʊˈtɔːriəs/noun
Widely and unfavorably known; famous for something bad.
Did you know?Notorious comes from Latin notorius, from notus meaning “known,” so its bad reputation is a historical twist, not the original meaning.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*gno-
“to know”
Latin
Latin
gnoscere / noscere
“to come to know, learn”
Latin
Latin
notus
“known, familiar”
Late Latin
Latin
notorius
“well-known, notorious”
Middle English
English
notorious
“publicly known, commonly spoken of”
Modern English
English
notorious
“widely and unfavorably known”