Etymology

terse

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Today it means: Of speech or style: brief, concise, to the point. Full definition →

First used early 17th c.Latin tersus
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The story

  1. Latin · derived fromtergeō, tergō“to clean, cleanse, rub, wipe, wipe off”
  2. Latin · derived fromtersus“clean, cleansed, rubbed or wiped off; neat, spruce; terse”
  3. English todayterse

From Latin tersus (“clean, cleansed, rubbed or wiped off; neat, spruce; terse”), perfect passive participle of Latin tergeō, tergō (“to clean, cleanse, rub, wipe, wipe off”).

First known use, by meaning

  • from early 17th c. Burnished, polished; fine, smooth; neat, spruce.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.