Where does “viceroy” come from?

Viceroy comes from Middle French vice-roy, combining vice- with Old French roi (king), derived from Latin rex, ultimately from the root meaning to rule or direct.

viceroy (English): One who governs a country, province, or colony as...

Definitions

  1. One who governs a country, province, or colony as...

Ancestry of “viceroy”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Frenchvice-royviceroy
2Middle Frenchroyking
3Old Frenchroiking
4Latinrēxking, ruler
5Proto-Italicrēksking
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₃rḗǵsking, ruler
7Proto-Indo-Europeanh₃reǵ-to straighten, to right oneself; right; just

Words derived from “viceroy”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₃reǵ- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₃rḗǵs →Every word from Proto-Italic rēks →
viceroy — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer