The story
- Latin · derived fromcongregātus
- Middle English · inherited fromcongregat(e)“(of people) banded together; (of liquids) accumulated; (of muscles) contracted; (of wounds) closed up”
- English todaycongregate
The adjective is first attested in 1400–1450, in Middle English, the verb c. 1513; from Middle English congregat(e) (“(of people) banded together; (of liquids) accumulated; (of muscles) contracted; (of wounds) closed up”), borrowed from Latin congregātus, perfect passive participle of congregō (“to congregate”) (see -ate (etymology 1, 2 and 3), from con- (“with, together”) + gregō (“to collect into a flock”), from grex (“flock, herd”). See gregarious and egregious. Participial usage of the adjective up until Early Modern English.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.