English
actor
Actor comes from Middle English actour, from Anglo-Norman and Middle French actor and their source, Latin āctor ‘doer’, from agō ‘to do’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eǵ-reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂éǵeti‘to be driving’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*agō‘to drive’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEagō‘to do’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEāctus
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEāctor‘doer’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500actour‘an actor’
- Englishearliest quotation 1769actor
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eǵ-reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂éǵeti‘to be driving’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*agō‘to drive’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEagō‘to do’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEāctus
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEāctor‘doer’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500actour‘an actor’
- Englishearliest quotation 1769actor
Earliest quotation: 1769, William Blackstone: “A man may be principal in an offence in…”
Formed from act + -or
Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ-
…
Latin āctum ‘decree, law’
Latin ācta ‘register of events’
Old French acte
Middle English acte ‘an act’
English act
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ-
suggest, register, essay, gesture, digest, congestion, acre, agrarian, belligerent, progesterone, gestation, ingestion, ingest, agitate, axiomatic, agger, samaj, gerund, gestion, 128 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂éǵeti ‘to be driving’
strategy, agony, antagonist, axiom, reactionary, antagonism, agonist, antagonize, stratagem, glucagon, agonize, 102 more
through Proto-Italic *agō ‘to drive’
reaction, transaction, actively, radioactive, inactive, unambiguous, reagent, retroactive, hyperactivity, ambiguously, 80 more
through Latin agō ‘to do’
agency, agent, action, act, activity, active, agenda, examination, examine, ambiguous, squat, agile, ambiguity, agility, activate, assay, agitation, enact, radium, cogent, exigent, inexact, redact, 97 more
through Latin āctus
Today it means
noun Someone who institutes a legal suit; a plaintiff or complainant.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ- / actor