Infinit

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Having no boundaries, bounds, or limits in extent, quantity, or duration, as an archaic variant of boundless
2. Describing something that goes on without any end or measurable limit, such as an unbounded expanse of space or time
3. Characterizing a quantity or extent so vast that it cannot be counted, measured, or exhausted by any means

Etymology: The spelling "infinit" is simply an older form of "infinite", and it has come down to us almost unchanged from Latin. The Latin "īnfīnītus" combined "in-", meaning "not", with "fīnis", meaning "end", plus a participle ending, so the literal sense was "without end" or "unbounded." Medieval English took the word through Old French, and it arrived in Middle English in that form, displacing an Old English word, "unġeendodlīċ", which meant much the same thing but was built from native materials ("un-", "geendian" to end, and "-lic"). The "infinit" spelling belongs to the period when English spelling was still settling, and the final "-e" that now ends the word was added later. Writers used both forms for centuries before the modern spelling became standard.