English
prosecute
Prosecute comes from Latin prōsecūtus ‘having escorted, accompanied’.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōsecūtus‘having escorted, accompanied’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1595–1596prosecute
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōsecūtus‘having escorted, accompanied’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1595–1596prosecute
Earliest quotation: c. 1595–1596, William Shakespeare, A Midsommer Nights Dreame: “I am beloved of beauteous Hermia; / Why should…”
Every English word from Latin prōsecūtus
Today it means
verb To start criminal proceedings against.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin prōsecūtus / prosecute