Where does “respectable” come from?
Respectable comes from Middle English -able, Old French -able, and Latin -abilis, formed from the prefix re- and specio meaning "to look at," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European wert-.
respectable (English): Deserving respect; Decent; satisfactory;...
Definitions
- Deserving respect; Decent; satisfactory;...
Ancestry of “respectable”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | respect | an attitude of consideration or high regard; good... |
| 2 | Middle English | respect | — |
| 3 | Old French | respect | — |
| 4 | Latin | respectus | respected; looking back; regard, consideration,... |
| 5 | Latin | respiciō | to look behind, look back at or upon, look to, look around |
| 6 | Latin | rĕ- | back, backwards |
| 7 | Latin | prōdūcō | to lead or bring forth, forward or out |
| 8 | Latin | prō- | forward direction, forward movement |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | *pro- | pro- see the Latin entry for further meanings |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | pro- | toward, forward |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | por- | to give birth; forward, through; going, passage |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |