Etymology

terrorist

T1E1R1R1O1R1I1S1T1

Today it means: A person, group, or organization that uses violent action, or the threat of violent action, to further political goals. Full definition →

English terror ← Middle English terrour ← Middle French terreur
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*tres-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*troséyeti
  3. Proto-Italic*troseō
  4. Latinterreō
  5. Latinterror
  6. Old Frenchterreur
  7. Middle Frenchterreur
  8. Middle Englishterrour
  9. Englishterror
  10. English todayterrorist

From terror + -ist. In the historical sense, after French terroriste. First used in 1794 in the Courier and Evening Gazette.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.