Where does “de repente” come from?

de repente (Spanish) comes from Spanish repente, from Latin repens, from Latin rēpō, from Proto-Italic rēpō, from Proto-Indo-European h₁reh₁p- — to creep.

de repente (Spanish): suddenly, abruptly, in a heartbeat

Definitions

  1. suddenly, abruptly, in a heartbeat

Ancestry of “de repente”, step by step

de repente traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Spanish repente

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Spanishrepenteattack, upsurge; fit, sudden movement
2Latinrepenscreeping, crawling; sudden, unexpected; recent,...
3Latinrēpōto creep, crawl
4Proto-Italicrēpō—
5Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁reh₁p-to creep

via Spanish de

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1SpanishdeThe name of the Latin-script letter D; of; ’s;...
2LatindeThe name of the letter "D"; of, concerning,...
3Proto-Indo-EuropeandeEmphatic or contrastive particle, and, but;...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁reh₁p- →Every word from Proto-Italic rēpō →Every word from Latin rēpō →