notorious

the word 'notorious' originates from the medieval latin term notorius, meaning 'well known', which itself derives from the latin past participle notus ('known'). this root is from the verb noscere, 'to get to know', a verb with proto-indo-european origins related to knowledge and recognition. while its latin ancestor was neutral, meaning simply 'known', the english word developed a strong negative connotation by the 16th century, shifting to mean 'known for something unfavorable'. the suffix '-ious' is a common adjectival ending borrowed from latin, used to form words meaning 'having the qualities of'.

Structure: notor (known) + ious (adjective suffix) notor (from latin notorius, from notus, meaning 'known', past participle of noscere 'to get to know'); ious (a latin-derived adjective-forming suffix meaning 'full of' or 'characterized by').