ratiocination

The story

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*h₂reh₁-“to put in order”
2. Proto-Italic · derived from*rēōr
3. Latin · derived fromratiōcinātiō“argumentation, reasoning, ratiocination; a syllogism”
4. French · borrowed fromratiocination
5. English todayratiocination

Borrowed from French ratiocination, from Latin ratiōcinātiō (“argumentation, reasoning, ratiocination; a syllogism”), from ratiōcinātus (“reckoned”) + -tiō (suffix forming a noun relating to some action or the result of an action). Ratiōcinātus is the perfect passive participle of ratiōcinor (“to compute, reckon; to argue, infer”), from ratiō (“reason, explanation”) (from reor (“to calculate, reckon”), possibly from Proto-Italic *rēōr, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂reh₁- (“to put in order”)) + -cinor, modelled after vāticinor (“to foretell, prophesy”), equivalent to ratiocinate + -ion.

Words from the same roots