private

The story

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*per
2. Latin · derived fromprīvātus“bereaved, deprived, set apart from, release”
3. Middle English · inherited fromprivat(e)“individual, exclusive, private”
4. English todayprivate

From Middle English privat(e) (“individual, exclusive, private”), from Latin prīvātus (“bereaved, deprived, set apart from, release”), perfect passive participle of prīvō (“to bereave, deprive, release”) (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix) for more), from prīvus (“private, one's own, proper”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *per; compare prime, prior, pristine. Doublet of privy.

Words from the same roots