Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “urgency” come from?

Urgency comes from Middle French urgence, from Latin urgentia, derived from the Latin verb urgēre meaning to push or drive, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European werǵʰ-.

urgency (English): The quality or condition of being urgent;...

Definitions

  1. The quality or condition of being urgent;...

Ancestry of “urgency”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishurgentRequiring immediate attention
2Middle Frenchurgentpressing, impelling
3Latinurgēns—
4Latinurgeō—
5Proto-Indo-Europeanwerǵ-to make

Words derived from “urgency”

  • urgence
  • nonurgency
  • unurgency
Every word from Proto-Indo-European werǵ- →