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im·mac·u·late

(ĭ-măkyə-lĭt)

adj.

1. Impeccably clean; spotless: "The room was as spare and immaculate as a monk's cell" (Caroline Preston).

2. Free from sin.

3. Free from fault or error: an immaculate record on the job.

4. Biology Having no spots or marks.

[Middle English immaculat, from Latin immaculātus : in-, not; see IN-¹ + maculātus, past participle of maculāre, to blemish (from macula, spot).]

im·macu·late·ly adv.

im·macu·late·ness n.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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