"R" Word Origins

respectfully

Origin

From respectful plus the adverb-forming suffix -ly.

respective

Medieval Latin

Borrowed via Medieval Latin respectivus from Latin respectus ("a looking back, regard").

respectively

Origin

From respective plus the adverb suffix -ly.

respiration

Latin

From Latin respiratio, "a breathing," from respirare, "to breathe again."

respirator

Origin

From respirate ("to breathe") plus the agent suffix -or, "thing that helps one breathe."

respiratory

New Latin

From New Latin respiratorius, related to respirare, "to breathe."

respire

Origin

From Middle English respiren, borrowed from Old French respirer or Latin respīrō (“to blow back, breathe out”), from re- (“back”) + spīrō (“to breathe, blow”).

respirologist

Origin

From respirology + -ist.

respite

Latin

From Old French respit, "rest, delay," ultimately from Latin respectus. It shares this Latin root with the word respect.

resplend

Origin

From Latin resplendere (“to shine brightly”).

resplendent

Latin

From Latin resplendere, "to shine back, glitter," from re- ("back") plus splendere ("to shine").

resplendid

Origin

Influence by splendid.

respond

Latin

From Old French respondre, from Latin respondere, "to answer, promise in return."

response

Latin

From Old French respons, ultimately from Latin responsum, "an answer," from respondere, "to respond."

responsibility

Origin

Formed in English from responsible plus -ity.

responsible

Latin

From Middle French responsable, ultimately tied to Latin respondere, "to respond." The English spelling comes from an Old French variant, responsible.

responsibly

Origin

From responsible plus -ly.

responsive

Latin

From Middle French responsif, ultimately from Latin respondere, "to respond."

rest

Old English

From Old English ræst, related to German Rast and Dutch rust, ultimately going back to a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to rest, calm down."

restart

Origin

From re- ("again") plus start.

restaurant

French

Borrowed from French restaurant, originally meaning "restorative," from restaurer ("to restore"). It first named a nourishing soup sold in early Parisian eating houses before coming to mean the establishment itself.

RESTful

Origin

From rest plus -ful, "full of rest."

restitute

Origin

From Old French restituer, from Latin restituō (“replace, restore”).

restitution

Latin

From Old French restitucion, from Latin restitutio, "a restoring," from restituere ("to restore").

restive

Origin

Modification of earlier restiff, from Middle English restyf, from Old French restif, from rester (“to stay, remain”), from Latin restō. * Shares an etymology with rest ("to remain," obsolete) *Merriam-Webster states that this word was originally used to describe horses that disobeyed commands. Presumably, then, the word came to mean fidgety or anxious more broadly.

restless

Old English

From Old English ræstleas, formed from ræst ("rest") plus the suffix -leas, meaning "without" — literally "without rest."

restlessness

Origin

From restless plus the noun-forming suffix -ness.

restock

Origin

From re- ("again") plus stock.

restoration

Latin

From Middle English restoracion, ultimately from Latin restauratio, tied to the verb restore.

restorative

Medieval Latin

From Old French restauratif and Medieval Latin restaurativus, tied to restore plus -ative.

restore

Latin

From Old French restorer, from Latin restaurare, formed from re- ("again") plus a root related to "to build."

restorer

Origin

From restore + -er.

restrain

Latin

From Old French restreindre, from Latin restringere, "to bind fast, restrict" — the same root that gives us "restrict" and "string."

restraint

Old French

From Old French restreinte, tied to the verb restrain — "to draw back tightly."

restrict

Latin

From Latin restrictus, "drawn back tightly," from re- ("back") + stringere ("to pull tight") — the same root behind "stringent."

restriction

Latin

From Latin restrictio, built the same way as restrict, with the noun-forming suffix -ion.

restrictive

Middle French

From Middle French restrictif. Morphologically restrict + -ive.

restripe

Origin

From re- + stripe.

restroom

Origin

Compound of rest + room; the term began as a polite euphemism for a lavatory.

result

Medieval Latin

From Medieval Latin resultare, "to spring back or rebound," from re- + salire ("to jump").

resultant

Origin

From Latin resultāns, present participle of resultō.

resume

Latin

From Latin resumere, "to take up again," from re- + sumere ("to take").

resumption

Origin

From re- + Latin sūmptus + -ion, from past participle of sūmō (“to take”).

resurrect

Latin

From Latin resurgere, "to rise again," via the past participle stem resurrect-.

resurrection

Late Latin

From Late Latin resurrectio, from Latin resurgere ("to rise again"), re- + surgere ("to rise").

resurrectionist

Origin

From resurrection (“the act of rising from the dead and becoming alive again”) + -ist (“forms agents of cause; forms adherents of a belief”), coined alongside resurrection man.

resuscitate

Latin

From Latin resuscitare, "to rouse again," from re- + sub- + citare ("to summon").

resuscitation

Middle English

From Middle English resuscitacion, from Old French ressuscitacion and Latin resuscitātio. Equivalent to resuscitate + -ion.