Etymology

elect

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Today it means: One chosen or set apart. Full definition →

Latin ēlēctus
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The story

  1. Latin · borrowed fromēlēctus
  2. English todayelect

Borrowed from Latin ēlēctus, past participle of ēligō (“to pick out, choose, elect”), from ē- (“out”) + legō (“to pick out, pick, gather, collect, etc.”); see legend. Cognate to eclectic, which is via Ancient Greek rather than Latin, hence prefix ἐκ (ek), rather than e- (from ex).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.