Where does “usury” come from?
Usury comes from Middle English usurie, from Latin usuria meaning interest on a loan, derived from usus meaning use.
usury (English): An exorbitant rate of interest, in excess of any...
Definitions
- An exorbitant rate of interest, in excess of any...
Ancestry of “usury”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | usurie | To lend money in order to make interest; usury |
| 2 | Old French | usurie | — |
| 3 | Latin | ūsūria | — |
| 4 | Latin | ūsūra | use, enjoyment |
| 5 | Latin | ūsus | use, employment, exercise, advantage |
| 6 | Latin | ūtor | to use, make use of, employ |
| 7 | Proto-Slavic | *ǫtorъ | croze |
| 8 | Proto-Slavic | torъ | paddock, pen |
| 9 | Proto-Slavic | terti | to rub, to scrape; to polish |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | terh₁- | to rub, turn; to drill, pierce |