sacrifice

sacrifice · noun¹

1. Proto-Indo-European*seh₂k-
2. Proto-Indo-European*sh₂krós
3. Proto-Italic*sakros
4. Old Latinsacros
5. Old Latin*sakr̥s
6. Old Latin*sakerr
7. Latinsacer
8. Latinsacrum
9. Proto-Indo-European*dʰeh₁-
10. Proto-Indo-European*dʰeh₁k-
11. Proto-Indo-European*dʰh₁kyéti
12. Proto-Italic*θakjō
13. Proto-Italic*fakjō
14. Latinfaciō
15. Latinsacrificium
16. Old Frenchsacrifise
17. Middle Englishsacrifice
18. English todaysacrifice

From Middle English sacrifice (“act of offering a life or object to a deity; the life or object so offered”), from Anglo-Norman sacrefiz, and Old French sacrifice, sacrifise (modern French sacrifice), from Latin sacrificium (“something offered to a deity, sacrifice”), from sacrum (“sacrifice, sacrificial rite”) + faciō (“to do, to make”) + -ium (suffix forming abstract nouns). The noun sacrum is the nominalized neuter of the adjective sacer (“devoted to a deity for sacrifice; holy, sacred”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *seh₂k- (“ceremony, ritual; to make sacred”), and the verb faciō is ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- (“to do; to place, put”). Related Latin formations include sacrificus (“of or pertaining to sacrifice, sacrificial”) and sacrificō (“to make a sacrifice”). Displaced native Old English blōt and hūsl. Cognates * Italian sagrifizio * Occitan sacrifici * Portuguese sacrificio * Spanish sacrificio

sacrifice · verb²

1. Middle English · inherited fromsacrificen“to offer a sacrifice to a deity”
2. English todaysacrifice

From Middle English sacrificen (“to offer a sacrifice to a deity”), from sacrifice (see etymology 1) + -en (suffix forming infinitives of verbs).

Words from the same roots