Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “secretariat” come from?

Secretariat comes from French secrétariat, from Medieval Latin secretariatus, from Latin secretarius meaning "officer entrusted with secrets," derived from secerno meaning "to sift or separate."

secretariat (English): The office or department of a government...

Definitions

  1. The office or department of a government...

Ancestry of “secretariat”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchsecrétariatsecretariat; office; secretarial work
2Medieval Latinsecretariatus—
3Latinsēcrētārius—
4Latinsēcrētus—
5Ancient Greekἀγωγόςleading, guiding; guide, escort; leading to
6Ancient GreekἄγωTo lead, fetch, bring along , take with; To carry...
7Proto-Hellenicágōto lead, to guide
8Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂éǵetito be driving
9Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂eǵ-to drive

Words derived from “secretariat”

  • secretariate
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂eǵ- →