immune
ih-MYOON · adjective
Origin
From Latin immūnis, "exempt from public service," formed from in- ("not") and mūnus ("service"). This passed through Middle French immun into Middle English before arriving in English.
This is Curio: one word's origin story, every morning. No feed, no backlog.
One short email each morning. Free; stop anytime. See a sample →
Journey
The word began as a legal and civic term for someone excused from duties or taxes, and only later came to describe the body's exemption from disease.
Related words
It shares its root mūnus with words built around the idea of duty or service.