Etymograph

English

acquaint

Acquaint comes from Old French acointier ‘get to know’, from Late Latin accognitus ‘recognized, known’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵneh₃-‘to recognise’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵn̥h₃sḱéti‘to recognise’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*gnōskō‘to know, get to know’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEgnōscō
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEnōscō‘to become acquainted with something, learn about it, to be aware of’
  6. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcognoscō‘to learn, to get to know’next step skipped: Late Latin accognōscō
  7. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEaccognitus‘recognized, known’
  8. Early Medieval Latinmodernaccognitāre
  9. Old Frenchc. 842–1400acointier‘get to know’
  10. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500aqueynten
  11. Englishearliest quotation c. 1591–1595acquaint

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵneh₃-‘to recognise’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵn̥h₃sḱéti‘to recognise’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*gnōskō‘to know, get to know’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEgnōscō
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEnōscō‘to become acquainted with something, learn about it, to be aware of’
  6. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcognoscō‘to learn, to get to know’next step skipped: Late Latin accognōscō
  7. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEaccognitus‘recognized, known’
  8. Early Medieval Latinmodernaccognitāre
  9. Old Frenchc. 842–1400acointier‘get to know’
  10. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500aqueynten
  11. Englishearliest quotation c. 1591–1595acquaint

Earliest quotation: c. 1591–1595, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet: “Acquaint her here, of my Sonne Paris Loue”.

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- ‘to recognise’

can, know, could, normal, ignore, recognition, narrative, glory, con, ken, keen, norm, ignorant, prognosis, narration, cunning, canny, connoisseur, uncouth, canna, kith, gnosis, recognizance, cun, 84 more

through Proto-Indo-European *ǵn̥h₃sḱéti ‘to recognise’

diagnostic, gnome, agnostic, 40 more

through Latin gnōscō

denote, annotation, noblesse, ignoble, 30 more

through Latin nōscō ‘to become acquainted with something, learn…’

note, notice, noble, notion, notorious, notation, nobility, cognition, notoriety, notary, annotate, 24 more

through Latin cognoscō ‘to learn, to get to know’

recognize, cognitive, incognito, cognizance, precognition, 14 more

Today it means

verb To furnish or give experimental knowledge of; to make (one) know; to make familiar.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- / acquaint

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