Etymology

action

ac·tion
A1C3T1I1O1N1

Today it means: The effort of performing or doing something. Full definition →

Middle English accioun ← Old French aucion ← Latin āctiō
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₂eǵ-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₂éǵeti
  3. Proto-Italic*agō
  4. Latinagō
  5. Latināctum
  6. Latināctiō
  7. Old Frenchaucion
  8. Middle Englishaccioun
  9. English todayaction

From Middle English accioun, accion, from Old French aucion, acciun, from Latin āctiō(n) (“act of doing or making”), from āct(us) + action suffix -iō(n), perfect passive participle of agere (“do, act”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éǵeti. See also act, active. By surface analysis, act + -ion.

Words from the same roots

Latināctiō all →

actioactio popularis

Proto-Indo-European*h₂éǵeti all →

actactiveactualobjurgate

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.