Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “prospect” come from?

Prospect comes from Latin prospectus, the past participle of prospicere meaning to look forward, from specere to look and the prefix pro-.

prospect (English): The region which the eye overlooks at one time;...

Definitions

  1. The region which the eye overlooks at one time;...

Ancestry of “prospect”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanProspektbrochure
2Latinprospectusview, sight, prospect; panorama; watched or...
3LatinprospicioI look far off; I see into the distance; I watch...
4Latinprō-—
5Proto-Italic*pro-—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanpro-toward, forward
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpor-to give birth; forward, through; going, passage
8Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
9Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “prospect”

  • prospecting
  • prospector
  • bioprospecting
  • prospectless
  • bioprospector
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →