Where does “espionnage” come from?

espionnage (French) comes from French espionner, from French espion, from Middle French espion, from Old French espion, from Frankish *spehō, from Frankish spehōn, from Proto-Germanic spehōną, from Proto-Indo-European speḱ- — to see, to look, to observe.

espionnage (French): espionage; spying

Definitions

  1. espionage; spying

Ancestry of “espionnage”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchespionnerto spy
2Frenchespionspy
3Middle Frenchespion—
4Old Frenchespionspy
5Frankish*spehō—
6Frankishspehōnto spy, watch; to peer, to look, to spy
7Proto-Germanicspehōnąto peer, look, spy
8Proto-Indo-Europeanspeḱ-to see, to look, to observe

Words derived from “espionnage”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European speḱ- →