English
inspector
Inspector comes from Latin īnspector ‘inspector, examiner’, from speciō ‘to observe, watch, look at’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *speḱ-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*speḱ-‘to see, to look, to observe’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*spéḱyeti‘to be looking at, to keep looking at’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*spekjō‘to observe, see’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEspeciō‘to observe, watch, look at’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEīnspiciō‘to examine or inspect’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEīnspector‘inspector, examiner’
- Englishearliest quotation 2011inspector
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*speḱ-‘to see, to look, to observe’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*spéḱyeti‘to be looking at, to keep looking at’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*spekjō‘to observe, see’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEspeciō‘to observe, watch, look at’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEīnspiciō‘to examine or inspect’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEīnspector‘inspector, examiner’
- Englishearliest quotation 2011inspector
Earliest quotation: 2011, Adam McDaniel, HTML5: “Google Chrome has a built-in development tool called the…”
Formed from inspect + -or
Proto-Indo-European *speḱ- ‘to see, to look, to observe’
…
Proto-Italic *spekjō ‘to observe, see’
Latin speciō ‘to look at’
Latin inspicere ‘to look into’
Latin inspectum
English inspect
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *speḱ- ‘to see, to look, to observe’
spy, suspicion, microscope, espionage, skeptic, kaleidoscope, gyroscope, espy, 115 more
through Proto-Indo-European *spéḱyeti ‘to be looking at, to keep looking at’
scope, skeptical, endoscopic, macroscopic, spectroscopic, 113 more
through Proto-Italic *spekjō ‘to observe, see’
speculation, speculative, speculate, inconspicuous, especial, specular, 25 more
through Latin speciō ‘to observe, watch, look at’
despite, special, specific, respect, species, perspective, spite, spice, aspect, spectrum, expectation, spectacular, specify, specimen, conspicuous, spectacle, retrospective, retrospect, spectator, expectant, specter, specious, circumspect, speculator, 28 more
Today it means
noun A person employed to inspect something.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *speḱ- / inspector