The story
- Proto-Indo-European*h₁éǵʰ
- Proto-Indo-European*h₁éǵʰs
- Proto-Italic*eks
- Latinex
- Latinex-
- Latinplōrō
- Latinexplōrō
- Middle Frenchexplorer
- English todayexplore
From Middle French explorer, from Latin explōrāre (“to investigate, search out”), itself said to be originally a hunters' term meaning "to set up a loud cry", from ex- (“out”) + plōrāre (“to cry”), but the second element is also explained as "to make to flow" (from pluere (“to flow”)). Displaced native Old English rāsian.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.