Etymology

accurate

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Today it means: Telling the truth or giving a true result; exact; not defective or faulty. Full definition →

First used 1650Latin accūrātus ← Proto-Italic *kʷoizā ← Proto-Indo-European *kʷeys-
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₂éd
  2. Proto-Italic*ad
  3. Proto-Italic*ad-
  4. Latinad-
  5. Proto-Indo-European*kʷey-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*kʷeys-
  7. Proto-Italic*kʷoizā
  8. Latincūra
  9. Latincūrō
  10. Latinaccūrō
  11. Latinaccūrātus
  12. English todayaccurate

Borrowed from Latin accūrātus, perfect passive participle of accūrō (“to take care of”), from ad- (“to, towards, at”) + cūrō (“care for”). First attested in 1610. Compare English cure.

First known use, by meaning

  • 1650 Telling the truth or giving a true result; exact; not defective or faulty.
  • 1610 Precisely fixed; executed with care; careful.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.