Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “celerity” come from?

Celerity comes from Old French celeritee, from Latin celeritas, derived from the Latin suffix -itas attached to a root from Proto-Indo-European kel- or kelH-.

celerity (English): Speed, swiftness; The speed of individual waves;...

Definitions

  1. Speed, swiftness; The speed of individual waves;...

Ancestry of “celerity”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchcéléritécelerity
2Latinceleritasquickness, speed, swiftness, haste, celerity
3Latin-tās—
4Proto-Indo-European-teh₂tsUsed to form nouns representing state of being
5Proto-Indo-European-teh₂Used to form nouns representing state of being
6Proto-Indo-European-tósCreates verbal adjectives from verb stems
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tós →