Where does “pirate” come from?
pirate (Old French) comes from Latin pīrāta, from Ancient Greek πειρατής, from Ancient Greek -τής, from Ancient Greek πεῖρα, from Proto-Indo-European per-, from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós — passed , crossed.
pirate (Old French): pirate
Ancestry of “pirate”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Latin | pīrāta | — |
| 2 | Ancient Greek | πειρατής | brigand, robber |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | -τής | Appended to verbs to form agent nouns |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | πεῖρα | trial, experiment, attempt |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |
Words derived from “pirate”