Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “practice” come from?

practice (English) comes from English practise, from Middle English practizen, from Middle French pratiser, from French pratiquer, from French pratique, from Middle French practique, from Latin prāctica, from Ancient Greek πρακτική — passed , crossed.

practice (English): Repetition of an activity to improve a skill; An...

Definitions

  1. Repetition of an activity to improve a skill; An...

Ancestry of “practice”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishpractiseTo repeat as a way of improving one's skill in...
2Middle Englishpractizen—
3Middle Frenchpratiser—
4Frenchpratiquerto do; to practise
5Frenchpratiqueapplied; concerning action or intervention of...
6Middle Frenchpractique—
7Latinprāctica—
8Ancient Greekπρακτικήpractice, experience
9Ancient GreekπρακτικόςOf, pertaining to, or appropriate for action; Fit...
10Ancient GreekπράσσωI do, practice
11Proto-Hellenicprā́ťťō—
12Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥h₂-k-yé-ti—
13Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
14Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “practice”

  • malpractice
  • practicer
  • prepractice
  • nonpractice
  • postpractice
  • mispractice
  • practible
  • telepractice
  • practicewear
  • forepractice
  • practicelike
  • psychopractice
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →