With his ideas still informant, Albert Einstein was 22 years old when he sat out alone on foot across the Alps.
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Who knows? Bad translation, I'd guess.– Ernest Friedman-HillCommented May 21, 2015 at 18:17
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The quote originates from a single article, and I don't see the phrase "still informant" used in a similar sense anywhere else. I suspect the writer meant to write something like "stll in forming".– nitro2k01Commented May 21, 2015 at 18:27
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Perhaps the author meant "inchoate".– A.EllettCommented May 21, 2015 at 22:39
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1 Answer
It is a regular formation from the primary meaning of
Inform: I, 2. (obelised as obsolete) intransitive to take shape; to form. -1652 (Shorter Oxford)
The -ant ending is a present participle. Therefore
Informant adj. taking shape. -2015(?) (obsolete?)
Equally it is properly formed, & accurately derived from the Latin: (Ainsworth, Thesaurus; who gives a quotation from Cicero to justify (2))
Informo -are, act. (1) to form, shape, or fashion. (2) to contrive or design in the mind.
