Where does “intelligence-gathering” come from?
intelligence-gathering (English) comes from English intelligence, from Middle English intelligence, from Old French intelligence, from Latin intelligentia, from Latin intelligēns, from Latin intellegō, from Latin legō, from Latin lēx — to gather, collect, with derivatives meaning to...
intelligence-gathering (English): The process of collecting information in order to gain knowledge about a situation or adversary, often performed clandestinely
Definitions
- The process of collecting information in order to gain knowledge about a situation or adversary, often performed clandestinely
Ancestry of “intelligence-gathering”, step by step
intelligence-gathering traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English intelligence
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | intelligence | Capacity of mind, especially to understand... |
| 2 | Middle English | intelligence | Comprehension, intelligence; the ability to understand |
| 3 | Old French | intelligence | comprehension; meaning; ability to comprehend |
| 4 | Latin | intelligentia | Alternative form of intellegentia |
| 5 | Latin | intelligēns | — |
| 6 | Latin | intellegō | to understand, comprehend, realize, come to know |
| 7 | Latin | legō | to collect, gather, bring together, catch |
| 8 | Latin | lēx | a proposition or motion for a law made to the people by a magistrate, a bill |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | lēg- | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | leǵ-s | — |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | leǵ- | to gather, collect, with derivatives meaning to... |
via English Gathering
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Gathering | A meeting or get-together; a party or social function |
| 2 | Middle English | gadering | — |
| 3 | Old English | gaderung | a gathering, assembly, joining, council,... |
| 4 | Old English | -ing | Forming nouns from verbs, indicating action,... |
| 5 | Old English | -tūn | homestead, village, town |
| 6 | Old English | tūn | enclosure, yard; place; dwelling |
| 7 | Proto-West Germanic | tūn | fence |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | tūną | fence; enclosure |
| 9 | Gaulish | dunum | fort; hill, hillfort |
| 10 | Proto-Celtic | dūnom | stronghold, rampart |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰewh₂- | smoke; mist, haze |