English
audit
Audit comes from Latin audiō ‘to hear’, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ewis ‘clearly, manifestly’, and ultimately from *h₂ew- ‘to see, perceive’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂ew-‘to see, perceive’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂ewis‘clearly, manifestly’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*awizdiō‘to hear’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaudiō‘to hear’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEaudītus
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1608–1609audit
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂ew-‘to see, perceive’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂ewis‘clearly, manifestly’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*awizdiō‘to hear’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaudiō‘to hear’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEaudītus
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1608–1609audit
Earliest quotation: c. 1608–1609, William Shakespeare, The Tragedy of Coriolanus: “Yet I can make my audit up.”
The story
The sense of examine is because examinations were originally presented orally, and the examiner listened.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew- ‘to see, perceive’
love, egg, ear, aviation, acoustic, oval, avid, anesthesia, ey, ovation, avian, aviator, auspicious, avarice, aviary, aural, ocarina, otolaryngology, 66 more
through Latin audiō ‘to hear’
Today it means
noun A judicial examination.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew- / audit