Inherently

How to spell inherently

10 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce inherently

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does inherently mean?

1. adverbIn a way that exists as a permanent, essential characteristic of something rather than being added from outside.

Inherently in a sentence

• The design was inherently unsafe, so the whole product had to be recalled.

• Working with high voltage is inherently dangerous and demands strict safety rules.

Where does inherently come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This adverb traces back to the Latin verb haerere, which literally meant 'to stick' or 'to cling'. From it came the form inhaerere, 'to stick fast within' or 'to be closely attached to', built from the prefix in- ('in') plus that clinging root. English took the adjective 'inherent' in the late 1500s for a quality that clings so closely to a thing that it cannot be separated from it, and 'inherently' followed as the adverb. The same haerere root quietly survives in several relatives, including 'adhere', 'cohere', and 'hesitate', all of which carry a sense of sticking or holding back. Knowing that the middle of the word is built on 'her' from haerere, rather than the unrelated 'here', helps explain the spelling, since the trap is the unstressed schwa in the second half that tempts writers toward 'inherantly'.

How the word is built

• in- (in)
• her (from Latin haerere: to stick, cling)
• -ent (adjective suffix)
• -ly (adverb suffix)