Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “crisis” come from?

Crisis comes from Latin crisis, from Ancient Greek κρίσις, derived from the verb κρίνω meaning to separate or judge, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European krey-.

crisis (English): A crucial or decisive point or situation; a...

Definitions

  1. A crucial or decisive point or situation; a...

Ancestry of “crisis”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latincrisis—
2Ancient Greekκρίσιςdecision, determination, judgment; trial,...
3Ancient GreekκρίνωTo separate, divide, part, distinguish between...
4Proto-Hellenickríňňō—
5Proto-Indo-Europeankrinyéti—
6Proto-Indo-Europeankrey-to sift, separate, divide

Words derived from “crisis”

  • crises
  • precrisis
  • postcrisis
  • noncrisis
  • ecocrisis
  • anticrisis
  • multicrisis
  • crisis-ridden
  • Eurocrisis
Every word from Proto-Indo-European krey- →