taxi

The story

1. Medieval Latin · derived fromtaxa“tax, charge”
2. German · derived fromTaxameter
3. French · derived fromtaximètre
4. English todaytaxi

Shortened from taximeter cab, taximeter (“automatic meter that records distance and fare”) from French taximètre, from German Taxameter (whence also English taxameter), coined from Medieval Latin taxa (“tax, charge”). More at tax, task. The aviation sense originally derived from a slang term for training aircraft used for practicing ground operations, which were said to drive around the airfield like a taxicab, and subsequently applied to all aircraft ground movements.

Words from the same roots