English
agent
Agent comes from Latin agēns ‘doing, acting, making’, from agō ‘to act, to behave’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ-.
- 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 act’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEagēns‘doing’
- Englishearliest quotation 1807agent
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 act’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEagēns‘doing’
- Englishearliest quotation 1807agent
Earliest quotation: 1807, James Edward Smith: “So far seems to be the work of chemistry…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ-
register, suggest, essay, acre, gesture, congestion, digest, agrarian, progesterone, gestation, ingestion, ingest, axiomatic, belligerent, agitate, samaj, gestion, gerund, agger, 129 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂éǵeti ‘to be driving’
strategy, agony, reactionary, axiom, antagonist, agonist, antagonism, antagonize, glucagon, stratagem, agonize, 103 more
through Proto-Italic *agō ‘to drive’
reaction, actively, transaction, radioactive, inactive, retroactive, unambiguous, hyperactivity, ambiguously, 81 more
through Latin agō ‘to act, to behave’
act, action, active, activity, actual, actor, examination, examine, activate, ambiguous, agenda, squat, ambiguity, assay, enact, agile, agility, agitation, radium, actuator, actuation, inexact, actuate, redact, cogent, exigent, 97 more
through Latin agēns ‘doing, acting, making’
Today it means
noun One who exerts power, or has the power to act.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ- / agent