Etymology Explorer › Middle French

Where does “persécuter” come from?

persécuter (Middle French) comes from Ecclesiastical Latin persecutor, from Latin persequor, from Latin sequor, from Proto-Italic sekʷōr, from Proto-Indo-European sékʷetor, from Proto-Indo-European sekʷ- — to follow; to see; to say.

Ancestry of “persécuter”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Ecclesiastical Latinpersecutorpursuer; persecutor of Christians
2LatinpersequorI follow perseveringly, continue to follow;...
3LatinsequorI follow, come or go after
4Proto-Italicsekʷōrfollow, come/go after
5Proto-Indo-Europeansékʷetorto be following
6Proto-Indo-Europeansekʷ-to follow; to see; to say

Words derived from “persécuter”

  • persecute
  • persecutest
  • persecuteth
  • persecutee
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sekʷ- →