Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “rakish” come from?

Rakish comes from English rake, from Middle English raken, from Old English racian and raca, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European h₃reǵ- meaning to stretch or straighten.

rakish (English): Dashingly, carelessly, or sportingly...

Definitions

  1. Dashingly, carelessly, or sportingly...

Ancestry of “rakish”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishrakeA garden tool with a row of pointed teeth fixed...
2EnglishrakehellImmoral; dissolute; A lewd or wanton person; a...
3EnglishhellA place or situation of great suffering in life;...
4Middle Englishhelle—
5Old Englishhellhell
6Proto-West Germanichalljuthe netherworld, the underworld, hell
7Proto-Germanichaljōthe netherworld, the underworld, hell
8Proto-Indo-Europeanḱel-to cover; to incline

Words derived from “rakish”

  • rakishly
  • rakishness
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱel- →