Where does “risk” come from?
Risk derives from Middle French risque, from Italian risco or rischio, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European -li-, through Latin formative suffixes -alis and -aris.
risk (English): A possible adverse event or outcome; The...
Definitions
- A possible adverse event or outcome; The...
Ancestry of “risk”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | risqué | Suggestive of sexual impropriety; bordering on... |
| 2 | French | risqué | risky; risque, risqué; past participle of risquer |
| 3 | Middle French | risque | — |
| 4 | Italian | rischiare | to risk, take the plunge |
| 5 | Italian | -are | Used, with a stem, to form the infinitive of most... |
| 6 | Latin | -ō | suffixed to nouns or adjectives. Originally a-stem nouns. Later extended to nouns with other stems. Forms regular first-conjugation verbs |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -ō | Derives nouns from roots |