"P" Word Origins

prevision

Origin

From Middle English previsioun, from Old French prevision, from Late Latin praevisio, praevisionem, from Latin praevideo.

prex

Origin

From US college slang; from 1828.

prexy

Origin

From earlier prex + -y.

prey

Latin

From Old French preie, from Latin praeda ("plunder, booty"); related to "predator."

Priam

Latin

From Latin Priamus, from Greek Πρίαμος (Príamos).

priapic

Origin

From Priapus + -ic, from Πρίᾱπος (Príāpos), a god of procreation pictured with an erect phallus in Greek mythology.

price

Latin

From Old French pris, preis, from Latin pretium ("worth, value, reward"); related to "precious" and "appreciate."

priceless

Origin

From price + -less ("lacking, without").

pricey

Origin

From price + -y.

prichard

Origin

From Welsh ap + English Richard.

prick

Old English

From Old English prica, "a sharp point or tiny mark," of Germanic origin.

pricker

Origin

From prick + -er.

prickhead

Origin

From prick (“penis”) + -head.

prickle

Origin

From Middle English prykkyl, prykyl, from Old English pricel, pricels, pricle (“a prickle, sharp point, bit”), from a conflation of Proto-West Germanic *prikislī and *prikil (“prickle”). By surface analysis, prick + -le. Cognate with West Frisian prikel (“goad, prickle”), Dutch prikkel (“sting, prickle, stimulus”), German Low German Prekel (“wooden stick, poker”), Saterland Frisian prikkelje (“to propel, spur on, goad”). First attested in the Old English period.

prickly

Origin

From prickle + -y.

prickteaser

Origin

From prick + teaser.

prickwad

Origin

From prick + -wad.

pride

Old English

From Old English pryde/prytu, "pride," related to Old English prud ("proud").

prideful

Middle English

From Middle English pridefulle, built from pride plus the suffix -ful.

priest

Late Latin

From Old English prēost, itself from Late Latin presbyter, from Greek presbúteros meaning "elder."

priestess

Origin

Formed from priest plus the feminine suffix -ess.

priesthood

Old English

From Old English prēosthād, formed from priest plus -hood, the same suffix seen in "childhood."

priestly

Middle English

From Middle English prestly, formed from priest plus the adjective-forming suffix -ly.

prig

Origin · 1500

First recorded in 16th-century Britain; the exact origin is unknown, though it may be linked to older slang senses meaning "thief" or "tinker."

prim

Origin · 1700

Of uncertain origin, first appearing in English around 1700; possibly related to primp and prink.

prima

Latin

From Italian prima, "first," from Latin prīma.

prima facie

Latin

Latin prima facie, literally "at first face", meaning at first appearance.

primacy

Origin

From Old French primacie, from Medieval Latin primatia (“office of a church primate”), from Latin primas plus a suffix corresponding to -acy. By surface analysis, prime + -acy.

primadonna

Italian

From Italian prima donna, literally "first lady", the term for the leading female singer in an opera company.

primal

Latin

From Latin prīmus ("first") combined with the adjective suffix -al.

primarily

Origin

From primary plus the adverb-forming suffix -ly.

primary

Latin

From Latin prīmārius, "of the first rank, chief," from prīmus ("first").

primate

Latin

From French primate, from Latin prīmās ("one of the first rank, chief"); the biological sense reflects the old idea that primates were the "highest" order of mammals.

primatial

Origin

From primate + -ial.

prime

Latin

From Old French prime, from Latin prīmus ("first"), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European roots meaning "before" or "in front."

primer

Medieval Latin

From Medieval Latin primarius/primarium ("prayer book"), which in early modern England came to also mean a basic schoolbook for teaching reading — the ancestor of today's "introductory guide" sense.

primeval

Latin

From Latin primaevus, "in the earliest period of life," from prīmus ("first") and aevum ("age, time").

primitive

Latin

From Latin prīmitīvus, "first or earliest of its kind," from prīmus ("first").

primo

Italian

Borrowed from Italian primo, meaning "first."

primogeniture

Latin

From medieval Latin primogenitura, from Latin primogenitus meaning 'firstborn', from primus 'first' and genitus 'born'.

primordial

Latin

From Latin prīmōrdiālis, "of the beginning."

primordium

Origin

Borrowed from Latin prīmōrdium.

primrose

Medieval Latin

From Old French primerose, from Medieval Latin prima ("first") and rosa ("rose") — likely named because it flowers so early in spring.

primula

Origin

The genus Primula was named by botanist Carl von Linnaeus (1707-1778) after Latin primus (“first”) because it flowers early.

primus

Latin

From Latin prīmus, "the first," related to prior.

prince

Latin

From Latin prīnceps, "first head," from prīmus ("first") plus capiō ("to seize, take").

princely

Middle English

From Middle English princely, formed from prince plus the suffix -ly.

princeps

Origin

Borrowed from Latin prī̆nceps (“first, foremost”). Doublet of prince and principe.