source (n.)

mid-14c., "support, base," from Old French sourse "a rising, beginning, fountainhead of a river or stream" (12c.), fem. noun taken from past participle of sourdre "to rise, spring up," from Latin surgere "to rise, arise, get up, mount up, ascend; attack," a contraction of surrigere, from assimilated form of sub "up from below" (see sub-) + regere "to keep straight, guide" (from PIE root *reg- "move in a straight line," with derivatives meaning "to direct in a straight line," thus "to lead, rule").

The meaning "a first cause, an origin" is from late 14c., as is that of "fountain-head of a river." The meaning "person or written work supplying information or evidence" is by 1777.

also from mid-14c.

source (v.)

"obtain from a specified source," 1972, from source (n.). Related: Sourced. Sourcing (n.) as "the obtaining of goods or parts from a specific source" is by 1960 in modern commercial use.

also from 1972

Entries linking to source

outsource (v.)

"obtain goods or a service from an outside or foreign supplier; contract work to an outside entity," especially in reference to work and jobs going overseas, by 1981 (implied in outsourcing), from out- + source (v.). Related: Outsourced.

*reg-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "move in a straight line," with derivatives meaning "to direct in a straight line," thus "to lead, rule."

It forms all or part of: abrogate; address; adroit; Alaric; alert; anorectic; anorexia; arrogant; arrogate; bishopric; correct; corvee; derecho; derogate; derogatory; Dietrich; direct; dress; eldritch; erect; ergo; Eric; Frederick; Henry; incorrigible; interregnum; interrogate; maharajah; Maratha; prerogative; prorogue; rack (n.1) "frame with bars;" rail (n.1) "horizontal bar passing from one post or support to another;" Raj; rajah; rake (n.1) "toothed tool for drawing or scraping things together;" rake (n.2) "debauchee; idle, dissolute person;" rakish; rank (adj.) "corrupt, loathsome, foul;" real (n.) "small Spanish silver coin;" realm; reck; reckless; reckon; rectangle; rectify; rectilinear; rectitude; recto; recto-; rector; rectum; regal; regent; regicide; regime; regimen; regiment; region; regular; regulate; Regulus; Reich; reign; resurgent; rex; rich; right; Risorgimento; rogation; royal; rule; sord; source; subrogate; subrogation; surge; surrogate; viceroy.

It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by:

Sanskrit raj- "a king, a leader," rjyati "he stretches himself," riag "torture" (by racking); Avestan razeyeiti "directs," raštva- "directed, arranged, straight;" Persian rahst "right, correct;" Latin regere "to rule, direct, lead, govern," rex (genitive regis) "king," rectus "right, correct;" Greek oregein "to reach, extend;" Old Irish ri, Gaelic righ "a king," Gaulish -rix "a king" (in personal names, such as Vircingetorix), Old Irish rigim "to stretch out;" Gothic reiks "a leader," raihts "straight, right;" Lithuanian raižytis "to stretch oneself;" Old English rice "kingdom," -ric "king," rice "rich, powerful," riht "correct;" Gothic raihts, Old High German recht, Old Swedish reht, Old Norse rettr "correct."

sub-

*upo

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Trends of source

adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/. Ngrams are probably unreliable.

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sink

Middle English sinken, from Old English sincan (intransitive) "become submerged, go under, subside" (past tense sanc, past participle suncen), from Proto-Germanic *senkwan (source also of Old Saxon sinkan, Old Norse sökkva, Middle Dutch sinken, Dutch zinken, Old High German sinka

reservoir

1680s, "a place where something tends to collect, place where anything is kept in store," originally figurative, from French réservoir "storehouse," from Old French reserver "set aside, withhold," from Latin reservare "keep back, save up; retain, preserve," from re- "back" (see r

seed

Middle English sēd, from Old English sēd (Anglian), sæd (West Saxon), "that which may be sown; an individual grain of seed," from Proto-Germanic *sediz "seed" (source also of Old Norse sað, Old Saxon sad, Old Frisian sed, Middle Dutch saet, Old High German sat, German Saat). This

spring

rising of a stream or river, a flow of water rising to the surface of the earth from below," Old English spring "spring, source...The figurative sense of "source or origin" of anything is attested from early 13c....Cognates include Old High German sprung "source of water," Middle High German sprinc "leap, jump; source of water."...

wrench

Old English wrencan "to twist," from Proto-Germanic *wrankjan (source also of Old High German renken, German renken "to twist..., wrench," Old English wringan "to wring"), from PIE *wreng- "to turn" (source also of Sanskrit vrnakti "turns, twists,"...Lithuanian rengtis "to grow crooked, to writhe"), nasalized variant of *werg- "to turn" (source also of Latin vergere "to...

pap

nipple of a woman's breast," late 12c., pappe, first attested in Northern and Midlands writing, probably from a Scandinavian source...(not recorded in Old Norse, but compare dialectal Swedish pappe), from PIE imitative root *pap- "to swell" (source also...of Latin papilla "nipple," which might rather be the source of the English word, papula "a swelling, pimple;" Lithuanian...

carp

type of freshwater fish, late 14c., from Old French carpe "carp" (13c.) and directly from Vulgar Latin *carpa (source also...of Italian carpa, Spanish carpa), from a Germanic source (compare Middle Dutch carpe, Dutch karper, Old High German karpfo..., German Karpfen "carp"); possibly the immediate source is Gothic *karpa....

germ

mid-15c., "bud, sprout;" 1640s, "rudiment of a new organism in an existing one," from French germe "germ (of egg); bud, seed, fruit; offering," from Latin germen (genitive germinis) "spring, offshoot; sprout, bud," which is of uncertain origin, perhaps from PIE root *gene- "give

provenance

"origin, source or quarter from which anything comes," 1785, from French provenance "origin, production," from provenant, present participle of provenir "come forth, arise, originate," from Latin provenire "come forth, originate, appear, arise," from pro "forth" (see pro-) + veni

head

Old English heafod "top of the body," also "upper end of a slope," also "chief person, leader, ruler; capital city," from Proto-Germanic *haubid (source also of Old Saxon hobid, Old Norse hofuð, Old Frisian haved, Middle Dutch hovet, Dutch hoofd, Old High German houbit, German Ha

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updated on March 24, 2023

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