Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “lawyerspeak” come from?

lawyerspeak (English) comes from English lawyer, from Middle English lawiere, from Middle English lawe, from Old English lagu, from Old Norse lǫg, from Old Norse lág, from Old Norse leggja, from Proto-Germanic lagjaną — to lie.

lawyerspeak (English): The abstruse jargon of lawyers

Definitions

  1. The abstruse jargon of lawyers

Ancestry of “lawyerspeak”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishlawyerA professional person qualified and authorized...
2Middle Englishlawiere—
3Middle EnglishlaweA law, regulation, or a group of them; Morality,...
4Old Englishlagusea, water, lake; the runic character ᛚ; law,...
5Old Norselǫgfate; situation, the condition that one is given...
6Old Norselága felled tree; log; lying tree
7Old Norseleggjato lay, place, put; to make, build
8Proto-Germaniclagjanąto lay, to place in a resting position
9Proto-Indo-Europeanlegʰ-to lie
Every word from Proto-Indo-European legʰ- →