Etymology

relative

rel·a·tive
R1E1L1A1T1I1V4E1

Today it means: Connected to or depending on something else; comparative. Full definition →

Middle French relatif ← Late Latin relātīvus ← Latin relātus
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The story

  1. Latin · derived fromrelātus
  2. Late Latin · derived fromrelātīvus
  3. Middle French · derived fromrelatif
  4. English todayrelative

From Middle French relatif, from Late Latin relātīvus, from Latin relātus, perfect passive participle of referō (“to carry back, to ascribe”), from re- (“again”) + ferō (“to bear or carry”). By surface analysis, relate + -ive.

Words from the same roots

Latinrelātus all →

relate

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.