Etymology Explorer › Latin

Where does “spectare” come from?

spectare (Latin) comes from Latin speciō, from Proto-Italic spekjō, from Proto-Indo-European spéḱyeti, from Proto-Indo-European speḱ- — to see, to look, to observe.

Ancestry of “spectare”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinspeciō—
2Proto-Italicspekjōto observe, to see
3Proto-Indo-Europeanspéḱyetito be looking at, to keep looking at
4Proto-Indo-Europeanspeḱ-to see, to look, to observe
Every word from Proto-Indo-European speḱ- →