miss
Latinsend, let go
About This Root
The root miss / mit comes from Latin mittere, "to send, to let go, to release." Picture a Roman commander giving an order: a messenger is dispatched, an arrow is let fly, troops are sent off. That single act of sending is the seed of one of the most productive word families in English.
Latin verbs have two stems, and mittere left us both. The present stem mitt- survives in the verbs: e-mit, sub-mit, trans-mit, per-mit, com-mit, ad-mit, o-mit, re-mit. The past-participle stem miss- (from missus, "having been sent") survives in the nouns and a few special words: mis-sion, e-mission, sub-mission, trans-mission, mis-sile, mis-sive. So almost every -mit verb has a matching -mission noun: submit → submission, transmit → transmission, emit → emission. Recognizing this pairing unlocks dozens of words at once.
The real power is in the prefixes, each one steering the direction of the sending:
- e- (out) + mit → emit: send out (light, heat, gas)
- trans- (across) + mit → transmit: send across
- ad- (to) + mit → admit: send toward → let in; and figuratively, let a truth in → confess
- per- (through) + mit → permit: let pass through → allow
- sub- (under) + mit → submit: send oneself under another's power → yield; or send a document up for review
- re- (back) + mit → remit: send back → return money (remittance) or send away a punishment → forgive a debt
- o- (a worn-down ob-, away) + mit → omit: send away → leave out
- dis- (apart) + miss → dismiss: send apart → send away, let go
- com- (together) + mit → commit: send/place together → entrust, then hand over completely to an action (commit a crime) or to a promise (commit to a plan)
A few members wandered far from "send" and are worth flagging. mission began as "the act of being sent" (a religious or military dispatch) and became "a purpose one is sent to fulfill." missile is literally "a thing fit to be thrown/sent." message traveled through Latin missaticum and Old French into "something sent" — a communication. And the pro-mit branch (pro- = forward) gives promise ("sent forward" as a pledge) and compromise (mutual promises sent forth to meet in the middle).
The takeaway: whenever you see mit or miss inside a word, something is being sent or let go. Find the prefix, and you usually have the direction.
Think of a missile being launched — it is literally "a thing sent flying." Every mit/miss word is about sending something somewhere: emit sends out, transmit sends across, submit sends under, dismiss sends away. The prefix is the direction; mit/miss is always the "send."
Core Words Deep Dive
The few words from this family worth telling in full — one by one.
com- (together) + mittere (send) = "to send/place together, to entrust." This is the family's biggest semantic leap. From "entrust something to someone" it split two ways: to hand a deed over into existence — commit a crime, commit an error (you "put it into the world"); and to hand yourself over to a course — commit to a relationship, a committed activist. Both senses share the core image of giving something over completely, with no taking back.
From missus, "having been sent." Originally "the act of sending someone forth" — a religious mission (sending people to spread faith) or a military mission (troops sent on a task). The meaning then shifted from the sending to the purpose: today a mission is the goal you were sent to achieve, even self-assigned (a personal mission, a mission statement).
com- (together) + pro- (forward) + missus (sent) = "a mutual sending-forward of promises." Originally both sides in a dispute would send forward a joint pledge to abide by an arbitrator's decision. From that, compromise came to mean meeting in the middle by each giving something up. A darker modern sense — "compromise security" — comes from the idea of weakening or endangering by yielding.
From Latin missilis, "that which can be thrown/sent," from missus. Originally any object hurled as a weapon — a stone, a spear ("the crowd threw missiles"). With modern warfare it narrowed to a self-propelled guided weapon. The root meaning is pure: a missile is, literally, "a thing sent flying."
sub- (under) + mittere (send) = "to send oneself under." The two modern senses both flow from this: to yield (place yourself under another's authority — submit to the rules) and to hand in (send a document up under someone's review — submit an application). Same image, two directions: putting yourself down, or sending your work up.
Related Roots
Both can mean "carry/bring," but mittere is about sending or releasing something away from you (emit, transmit, dismiss), while fer (from ferre) is about bearing or carrying along with you (transfer, refer, offer). Quick test: letting it go → mit/miss; carrying it → fer.
port (portāre) means physically transporting goods from place to place; mittere means sending or dispatching, often something abstract (a signal, a message, permission) or released into the air (emissions). Trucks carry (port); senders dispatch (mit).
Associated Words · 88
admissible
Acceptable or allowable, especially as legal evidence
admission
Permission to enter; an acknowledgment of the truth of something
admit
To acknowledge something as true; to allow entry or membership
admittance
Permission or right to enter
admitted
Openly acknowledged or generally accepted
admittedly
Used to acknowledge something as true; by general admission
anti-missile
Designed to intercept or destroy missiles
commission
Official authority to act; a percentage-based fee; to officially authorize
commissioner
An official appointed to a position of authority in a government or organization
commit
To carry out an act; to pledge oneself to something
commitment
A promise or pledge; dedication to a cause or obligation
committed
Dedicated and loyal to a cause or obligation
committee
A group appointed to carry out a specific task or make decisions
committeeman
A male member of a committee or local political party
compromise
A mutual agreement through concessions; to settle by giving up something; to put at risk
dismiss
To discharge from employment; to send away; to refuse to consider seriously
dismissal
The act of firing someone from a job or sending someone away
dismissed
Having been fired or sent away; treated as unimportant
dismission
The act of dismissing someone; removal from office or employment
dismissive
Showing contempt or treating something as unworthy of attention
dismissively
In a scornful, dismissive manner
emissary
A person sent on a mission to represent another
emission
The release or discharge of gas, light, heat, etc.
emissive
Capable of emitting radiation, light, or heat
emit
To send out or release light, heat, sound, or gas
emitted
Released or discharged outward
emitter
Something that emits energy; the emitter terminal of a transistor
impermissible
Not allowed or permitted
impermissibly
In a way that is not permitted
inadmissible
Not allowed or acceptable, especially as legal evidence
intermission
A pause or break between parts of a performance or event
intermit
To stop or pause temporarily
intermittent
Stopping and starting at irregular intervals; not continuous
intermittently
Stopping and starting at irregular intervals
light-emitting
Producing or giving off light
low-emission
Producing few pollutants or harmful gases
manumission
The formal freeing of a person from slavery
manumit
To release someone from slavery
message
a communication or information; to send a message
messenger
A person who carries or delivers messages
missile
A self-propelled guided weapon; any object thrown as a weapon
mission
An important task or assignment; a strongly felt purpose or goal
missionary
A person sent to spread religion abroad; relating to such work
missionize
To carry out missionary work
missive
A written message or letter
neurotransmitter
A chemical that transmits nerve signals between neurons across a synapse
omission
The act of leaving something out; something left out or neglected
omit
To leave out or exclude something
omitted
Left out or excluded intentionally or by oversight
permissible
Allowed or acceptable according to rules or laws
permission
Official consent or authorization to do something
permissive
Allowing great freedom; lenient and not strict in discipline
permissiveness
The tendency to allow freedom of behavior without strict rules
permit
To allow or give permission; an official document granting authorization
permitted
Allowed or authorized
permittee
A person granted a permit
premise
A statement assumed as the basis for an argument; a building and its grounds
promise
a commitment to do something; to make a pledge
promising
Showing signs of future success; likely to develop well
promissory
Containing or conveying a promise or commitment
readmission
The act of admitting again; 重新接纳，再次入院
readmit
To allow to enter or join again; 重新接纳，再次准入
remiss
Careless or negligent in fulfilling one's duties
remission
Reduction in disease severity; forgiveness of sin or debt
remit
To send money or forgive a debt; scope of responsibilities
remittance
Money sent to someone in another place
remittee
The recipient of a remittance or payment
remittent
Alternately increasing and decreasing in severity (of a disease)
retransmission
Transmitting something again over a different medium or time
retransmit
To transmit again or through another medium
self-admitted
Acknowledged by oneself
submission
Yielding to authority; presenting something for judgment or review
submissive
Meekly obedient and yielding to others' authority
submissively
In a meek and obedient manner
submissiveness
The tendency to yield to others' authority or will
submit
To hand in for consideration; to yield to another's authority
surmise
To guess or suppose without firm evidence; a conjecture
transmissible
Capable of being passed on or transmitted, especially a disease
transmission
The sending of signals, power, or disease from one place to another; a vehicle's gearbox
transmission-line
A conductor used to carry electrical signals or power over a distance
transmit
To send or pass something from one person or place to another
transmittal
The act of sending a message or document
transmitter
A device that broadcasts radio or TV signals; one who transmits something
transmitting
The process of sending or broadcasting signals or messages
uncommitted
Not pledged to any cause or position; neutral
unremitting
Never stopping; continuous and persistent
unremittingly
Continuously and without letting up
zero-emission
Producing no pollutant emissions